Antecedents and Mediators of Physical Activity in Relation to Quality of Life in Women with Early-Stage Endometrial Cancer: Following the Circuit Training Program to Health

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the sixth most common cancer in women in Taiwan, and more than half of the new cases are diagnosed at stages I–II. Most diagnosed women could survive more than 10 years. However, these women are a relatively under-researched population who disproportionately experience factors such as obesity and physical inactivity that put them at a risk for poor quality of life (QoL). Research has shown that physical activity (PA) has a positive effect on cancer survivors, including improving menopausal symptoms and QoL. Therefore, 105 women with EC will be recruited in the first year of the study to explore (1) the frequency, duration, and intensity of PA among women with early-stage EC; (2) the differences between self-reported PA and objective accelerometer data; and (3) the relationships among personal-disease characteristics, self-efficacy, social support, PA, menopausal symptoms, and QoL. In the second year of the study, the circuit training program will be tested, and 112 women with EC will be recruited (56 for the intervention group and 56 for the comparison group) to explore (1) the relationships between changes of self-efficacy and social support and changes in PA for women who are in the intervention group; (2) the effect of the circuit training program on PA, body mass index (BMI), muscle strength, and hormones; (3) the effects of changes in PA, BMI, muscle strength, and hormones on menopausal symptoms and QoL for women in the intervention group; and (4) the differences of self-efficacy, social support, PA, menopausal symptoms, and QoL between women in the intervention study and those in the comparison group. The instruments used include the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (GLTEQ), International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Format (IPAQ-SF), Greene Climacteric Scale (GCS), Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Endometrial cancer (FACT-En), Gynecologic Cancer Lymphedema Questionnaire (GCLQ), the Social Support for Exercise Survey (SSES), and Physical Activity Appraisal Inventory (PAAI), as well as an Actigraph accelerometer and a digital dynamometer. Statistics analyses will include hierarchical multiple linear regression (HMLR), path analysis, online Sobel test, hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), repeated measures analysis of variance (repeated measures ANOVA), generalized estimating equations (GEE), and two-group multivariate analysis of variance (two-group MANOVA). The results of this study can provide important information for health care providers to conduct evidence-based interventions for this population, which may directly or indirectly improve their QoL.

Project ID:PC10507-0403
External Project ID:MOST105-2628-B182-007-MY2