View clinical trials related to Cancer.
Filter by:The purpose of this study is to learn whether an education and support program can help caregivers feel more confident in technical and communication skills needed to care for a person with cancer. Patients with cancer and their caregivers face many challenges. These include learning about cancer and its treatment, coping with symptoms from illness and treatment side effects, making adjustments to usual activities, and managing the emotional effects of having a serious illness. This study is testing whether different forms of education and support can help caregivers feel better prepared. To find out if education about caregiving and different kinds of support are effective, study personnel will compare approaches to help find ways to improve the services that are provided to caregivers during cancer treatment. About 180 patients and their caregivers at the Seidman Cancer Center will take part in this study. Participating in research is voluntary and this study is funded by the National Institute of Health.
Childhood cancer survivors are vulnerable to treatment-related late effects, including physical and psychosocial morbidities, subsequent malignancies, and premature death. Symptom assessment provides a unique insight into survivorship care since symptoms not only indicate the manifestation for the occurrence of chronic health conditions, but also impact quality of life and survival. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has developed a Patient-Reported Outcomes version of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (PRO-CTCAE) to assess symptomatic adverse events (AEs) for adult-onset cancer patients who are receiving cancer therapies. However, content-appropriate and clinically validated symptom assessment tools for adult survivors of childhood cancer are not available. Primary Object 1: Establish content validity for the PRO-CTCAE-SCC Primary Objective 1A: Conduct a symptom selection process through qualitative research to identify symptomatic AEs for adult survivors of childhood cancer Primary Objective 1B: Create symptomatic AE items for adult survivors of childhood cancer based on the prevalence and clinical importance ratings on the items Primary Objective 2: Validate the PRO-CTCAE-SCC using psychometric methods and objective clinical parameters Primary Objective 2A: Test dimensionality for the PRO-CTCAE-SCC Primary Objective 2B: Test clinical validity for the PRO-CTCAE-SCC Primary Objective 2C: Test responsiveness to change for the PRO-CTCAE-SCC Secondary Objective 1: Increase clinical usefulness of the PRO-CTCAE-SCC Secondary Objective 2: Establish meaningful cut-points and minimally important differences (MIDs) on symptom burden scores for clinical decision-making
New therapies for cancer increased patient survival, but led to the recognition of adverse effects associated with cancer treatment, such as the use of chemotherapy. Cardiotoxicity is the most significant adverse effect, which affect the functional capacity and quality of life and is associated with high morbidity and mortality, regardless of the oncological prognosis. One of the manifestations of cardiotoxicity is ventricular dysfunction that can lead to heart failure. Neuro humoral hyperactivation with increased sympathetic nerve activity is a typical manifestation of heart failure and is associated with worse prognosis. Studies have shown that physical training significantly reduces sympathetic nerve activity in addition to improving muscle blood flow, reversing effects on skeletal muscle and improving quality of life. The hypothesis is that physical training may reduce sympathetic nerve activity and vasoconstrictor status in patients with heart failure caused by anthracyclines, as well as improving baroreflex and chemoreflex sensibility, mechanoreflex and metaborreflex control and skeletal myopathy.
Palliative care is defined as multidisciplinary care that increases quality of life (QOL) for patients with a life-threatening illness. Although it is known that patients with the most severe physical and psychological symptoms have the greatest need for palliative care, these patients are often not referred to palliative care services in a timely manner. We have developed a system called STEP (Symptom screening with Targeted Early Palliative care) that identifies patients with high symptom burden in order to offer them timely access to palliative care. The investigators are conducting a single-arm trial at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre to determine the feasibility of a larger randomized trial of STEP versus usual care and to establish specific parameters for its planning.
Patients with cancer in developing countries face considerable challenges in obtaining access to care due to a lack of human resources and infrastructure. This is particularly pressing for vulnerable populations such as older adults. In this setting, many patients receiving chemotherapy are unable to report the presence of toxicities, and adverse events can go unnoticed for considerable amounts of time. The goal of this study is to assess the accuracy of an objective patient-centered measure of physical function (the number of steps taken per day measured using an accelerometer-equipped smartphone) for the remote detection of chemotherapy toxicity in older adults. This study builds on a pilot trial showing that monitoring older patients remotely utilizing an accelerometer-equipped smartphone is feasible and acceptable, and that a decline in the number of steps detected using the device can be an early sign of chemotherapy toxicity. The hypothesis of this study is that a decline in the number daily steps from a prechemotherapy baseline, measured using an accelerometer-equipped smartphone, will be accurate for detecting chemotherapy toxicity in older adults with cancer. This study will evaluate the ability of a patient-centered measure (a decline in the number of daily steps compared with a pre-chemotherapy baseline) to identify the presence of clinically-significant chemotherapy-related toxicity in Mexican older adults with cancer starting first line chemotherapy. Patients will be provided with an accelerometer-equipped smartphone with an installed pedometer application. Baseline steps per day will be obtained and recorded before starting chemotherapy. The patients' steps will be monitored daily for the first three chemotherapy cycles and compared with baseline recordings. Patients will be contacted daily and chemotherapy toxicity will be assessed by a physician. If significant toxicities are identified, the patient will be prompted to seek medical attention. The optimal cutoff point for detecting chemotherapy toxicity utilizing a decline in the number of daily steps will be chosen and validated. The adherence and satisfaction with the intervention will also be evaluated. This study could improve current methods and transform the way in which cancer care is delivered by demonstrating that a simple patient-centered measure obtained using a commercially available smartphone can aid in the accurate identification of clinically significant toxicities among a vulnerable population such as older adults with cancer.
The purpose of the investigator's graduate student research study is to investigate if there are significant changes in hair mineral levels in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
The objective of this study is to investigate whether the SNP rs2910164 in the pre-miR-146a gene is associated with outcome and toxicity of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy.
There is strong evidence that specific types of exercise can improve health and physical function in older adults. While community exercise classes exist, many older adults with chronic conditions may need guidance from credentialed exercise professionals to ensure sufficient dose and progression and to address fears or low exercise self-efficacy. Furthermore, low protein intake among older adults is common and initiating exercise when nutrition is inadequate may cause weight loss and limit gains in muscle strength. The primary goal is to determine the feasibility of implementing the MoveSTroNg program under real-world conditions, measured through referral and recruitment to the program and study retention and adherence rates.
Over 50% of the more than 270,000 childhood cancer survivors in the U.S. have been treated with anthracyclines and thus are at risk of developing cardiotoxicity. The impact of exercise training on LV structure has been extensively studied. Left ventricular hypertrophy and cardiac chamber enlargement with the accompanying ability to generate a large stroke volume are direct results of exercise training. Aerobic exercise therapy offers a non-pharmacological mechanism to modulate multiple gene expression pathways that may promote cardiac remodeling. No prior studies have investigated the efficacy of aerobic exercise in the prevention or treatment of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity. We hypothesize that exercise intervention leads to a reverse in adverse cardiac remodeling with improvement of global and regional myocardial function in patients exposed to anthracycline.
Symptom interference is common for survivors of young adult cancer (aged 18-39 at diagnosis) and impacts their abilities to achieve normative life goals (e.g., education, careers, independence, romantic/social relationships) as well as adhere to recommended follow-up care. Assistance with symptom management has been rated by young adult survivors as an important and unmet healthcare need; however, skill-based symptom management interventions have typically been tested among older cancer survivors and have not targeted the unique developmental needs of those diagnosed as young adults. The proposed research advances the health and wellbeing of young adult cancer survivors by creating a developmentally appropriate hybrid in-person/mHealth behavioral symptom management intervention which addresses variables (i.e., symptoms and symptom interference) consistently linked to significant social, economic, and health burden.