Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Mar 23;15(1):38.
doi: 10.1186/s13102-023-00650-2.

Home-based cardio-oncology rehabilitation using a telerehabilitation platform in hematological cancer survivors: a feasibility study

Katerina Filakova  1   2 , Andrea Janikova  3 , Marian Felsoci  4 , Filip Dosbaba  1 , Jing Jing Su  5 , Garyfallia Pepera  6 , Ladislav Batalik  7   8
Affiliations

Home-based cardio-oncology rehabilitation using a telerehabilitation platform in hematological cancer survivors: a feasibility study

Katerina Filakova et al. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. .

Abstract

Purpose: Cardiovascular disease is a competing mortality cause in hematological cancer survivors due to toxic oncological treatment, accumulation of risk factors, and decline of cardiorespiratory fitness. Cardio-oncology rehabilitation (CORE) is an emerging treatment model to optimize the prognosis of hematological cancer patients and survivors; however, its accessibility during the COVID-19 pandemic is poor. The study aimed to evaluate the feasibility, safety, and effect of a 12-week home-based CORE intervention in telerehabilitation approach among hematological cancer survivors.

Methods: A prospective single-arm interventional study was conducted at a faculty hospital in Brno, Czech Republic. This study provided 12 weeks of the home-based CORE using a telerehabilitation approach that allows remote supervision by a clinician from a medical facility. The telerehabilitation approach consists of three components: a heart rate sensor (PolarM430, Kempele, Finland), a web platform compatible with the sensor, and telesupervising via telephone call (1 call per week). To improve adherence, a physiotherapist called participants to assess or address adverse effects, exercise feedback, and participant-related concerns. The anthropometry, body composition, and cardiorespiratory fitness were measured immediately after the intervention.

Results: Eleven hematological cancer survivors with an average age of 60.3 ± 10 years participated in the study. Most participants were diagnosed with Follicular lymphoma and received maintenance treatment. Participants had a significant (p < 0.05) increase in cardiorespiratory fitness by 2.6 ml/kg/min; and in peak workload, from 143.3 ± 60.6 W to 158.6 ± 67.5 W (p < 0.05). Improvement in anthropometry and body composition was observed but yielded no statistical significance. Most (80%) participants completed the three times/per week telesupervising exercise session for 12 weeks.No adverse event was identified.

Conclusion: Findings from this study suggest that home-based CORE may provide hematological cancer survivors with an increase in CRF during the rehabilitation period after hospital discharge. The telerehabilitation CORE model is effective, feasible, safe, and has demonstrated good adherence. Further randomized controlled efficacy study with larger sample size is needed before clinical implementation.

Clinical trial registration: Clinical trial registration number NCT04822389 (30/03/2021).

Keywords: Cardio-oncology rehabilitation; Cardiorespiratory fitness; Home-based exercise; Telemonitoring; Telerehabilitation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Scheme of rehabilitation approach
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Gradual 12-week exercise prescription
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Flow chart of the study
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
The change in peak oxygen uptake from baseline to 12 weeks. Box plots indicate peak oxygen uptake values for the whole cohort (n = 11). Line plots indicate changes for individual participants
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Yusuf S, Joseph P, Rangarajan S, et al. Modifiable risk factors, cardiovascular disease, and mortality in 155 722 individuals from 21 high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries (PURE): a prospective cohort study. Lancet. 2020;395:795–808. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(19)32008-2. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mohan N, Jiang J, Dokmanovic M, Wu WJ. Trastuzumab-mediated cardiotoxicity: current understanding, challenges, and frontiers. Antib Ther. 2018;1:13–7. doi: 10.1093/abt/tby003. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Koene RJ, Prizment AE, Blaes A, Konety SH. Shared Risk factors in Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer. Circulation. 2016;133:1104–14. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.115.020406. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lenneman CG, Sawyer DB. Cardio-Oncology: an update on cardiotoxicity of Cancer-Related. Treat Circ Res. 2016;118:1008–20. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.115.303633. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sase K, Kida K, Furukawa Y. Cardio-oncology rehabilitation-challenges and opportunities to improve cardiovascular outcomes in cancer patients and survivors. J Cardiol. 2020;76:559–67. doi: 10.1016/j.jjcc.2020.07.014. - DOI - PubMed

Associated data