Effects of a 6-month aerobic exercise intervention on brain morphology in women with breast cancer receiving aromatase inhibitor therapy: a sub-study of the EPICC trial.

Objective: Physical exercise may increase brain volume and cortical thickness in late adulthood. However, few studies have examined the possibility for exercise to influence brain morphology in women treated for breast cancer. We conducted a nested sub-study within a randomized clinical trial to examine whether 6 months of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise in postmenopausal women with early-stage breast cancer influences brain morphology.

A Qualitative Study of Electronic Patient-Reported Outcome Symptom Monitoring After Thoracic Surgery.

Introduction: Thoracic surgery is a mainstay of therapy for lung cancer and other chronic pulmonary conditions, but recovery is often complicated. Digital health systems can facilitate remote postoperative symptom management yet obstacles persist in their routine clinical adoption. This study aimed to identify patient-perceived barriers and facilitators to using an electronic patient-reported outcome (ePRO) monitoring platform specially designed to detect complications from thoracic surgery postdischarge.

Patient motivators of postoperative electronic patient-reported outcome symptom monitoring use in thoracic surgery patients: a qualitative study.

Background: Electronic patient-reported outcome (ePRO) systems can be used to engage patients in remote symptom monitoring to support postoperative care. We interviewed thoracic surgery patients with ePRO experience to identify factors that influenced use of ePROs to report their symptoms post-discharge.

Method: This qualitative study used semi-structured telephone interviews with adults who underwent major thoracic surgery at an academic medical center in North Carolina.

Effects of aerobic exercise on neurocognitive function in postmenopausal women receiving endocrine therapy for breast cancer: The Exercise Program in Cancer and Cognition randomized controlled trial.

Objective: The Exercise Program in Cancer and Cognition (EPICC) Study was a randomized controlled trial (RCT) designed to determine whether six months of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise improves neurocognitive function in women with breast cancer (BC) receiving endocrine therapy (ET).

Methods: Postmenopausal women with hormone receptor+, early-stage BC, within two years post-primary therapy were randomized to the exercise intervention (six months, ≥150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise/week) or usual care control condition. Outcomes were assessed at pre-randomization and after intervention completion.

Cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with hippocampal resting state connectivity in women newly diagnosed with breast cancer.

Background: Breast cancer and its treatment are associated with aberrant patterns of resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) between the hippocampus and several areas of the brain, which may account for poorer cognitive outcomes in patients. Higher cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) has been associated with enhanced rsFC and cognitive performance; however, these associations have not been well studied in breast cancer. We examined the relationship between CRF, rsFC of the hippocampus, and cognitive performance among women newly diagnosed with breast cancer.

Obesity, Psychological Distress, and Resting State Connectivity of the Hippocampus and Amygdala Among Women With Early-Stage Breast Cancer.

Objective: Overweight and obesity [body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m] are associated with poorer prognosis among women with breast cancer, and weight gain is common during treatment. Symptoms of depression and anxiety are also highly prevalent in women with breast cancer and may be exacerbated by post-diagnosis weight gain. Altered brain function may underlie psychological distress.

Physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness, and cognitive function in postmenopausal women with breast cancer.

Physical activity may improve cognitive function in women with breast cancer. In a cross-sectional study, we explored the relationship between cognitive function and physical activity (actigraph) and cardiorespiratory fitness (sub-maximal graded exercise test) in 73 postmenopausal women with early stage breast cancer prior to the initiation of systemic adjuvant therapy. Cognitive function was assessed with a standardized battery of neurocognitive measures assessing eight domains.

Trajectories of Cognitive Function and Associated Phenotypic and Genotypic Factors in Breast Cancer.

Objectives: This study identified women with unique trajectories of executive function, concentration, and visual working memory before and during adjuvant therapy for breast cancer, and examined phenotypic and genotypic predictors associated with subgroups.

Sample & Setting: 399 postmenopausal women, of whom 288 were women with early-stage breast cancer and 111 were women without breast cancer, matched on age and years of education to the women with breast cancer, and all at an urban cancer center.

Methods & Variables: A repeated-measures design was used; assessments occurred before adjuvant therapy and every six months post-therapy initiation.

Protocol for Exercise Program in Cancer and Cognition (EPICC): A randomized controlled trial of the effects of aerobic exercise on cognitive function in postmenopausal women with breast cancer receiving aromatase inhibitor therapy.

Unlabelled: The Exercise Program in Cancer and Cognition (EPICC) Study is a randomized controlled trial designed to test the effects of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on cognitive function in postmenopausal women with early-stage breast cancer during the first six months of aromatase inhibitor therapy. It is estimated that up to 75% of survivors of breast cancer experience cognitive impairment related to disease and treatment. At present, there are no known interventions to improve or manage cognitive function for women with breast cancer.

Development of a Standardized Approach to Disclosing Amyloid Imaging Research Results in Mild Cognitive Impairment.

The increased use of PET amyloid imaging in clinical research has sparked numerous concerns about whether and how to return such research test results to study participants. Chief among these is the question of how best to disclose amyloid imaging research results to individuals who have cognitive symptoms that could impede comprehension of the information conveyed. We systematically developed and evaluated informational materials for use in pre-test counseling and post-test disclosures of amyloid imaging research results in mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Trajectories of self-reported cognitive function in postmenopausal women during adjuvant systemic therapy for breast cancer.

Objective: In a sample of 368 postmenopausal women, we (1) determined within-cohort and between-cohort relationships between adjuvant systemic therapy for breast cancer and self-reported cognitive function during the first 18 months of therapy and (2) evaluated the influence of co-occurring symptoms, neuropsychological function, and other covariates on relationships.

Methods: We evaluated self-reported cognitive function, using the Patient Assessment of Own Functioning Inventory (PAOFI), and potential covariates (e.g.

A New Measure of Research Participant Burden: Brief Report.

Effective conceptualizations of research burden should address indirect burdens related to research duration, intensity, and invasiveness. Introducing the concept of perceived research burden, we developed, tested, and validated a new instrument, the Perceived Research Burden Assessment (PeRBA). Initial psychometric evaluation of PeRBA reveals good internal consistency, evidence of face validity, and acceptable convergent and discriminant validity.

Patterns of change in cognitive function with anastrozole therapy.

Background: The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the effects of the first 18 months of anastrozole therapy on cognitive function in women with breast cancer.

Methods: This large, longitudinal cohort study was composed of postmenopausal women with early-stage breast cancer who received chemotherapy plus anastrozole (n = 114) or anastrozole alone (n = 173) and a control group (n = 110). Cognitive function was assessed before systemic therapy and 6, 12, and 18 months after therapy initiation and at comparable time points in controls.

Influence of patient and treatment factors on adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy in breast cancer.

Purpose/objectives: To comprehensively assess the patient and illness or treatment factors that may predict nonadherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy and to explore whether an interaction occurs between these factors in women with breast cancer.

Design: Repeated-measures design.

Setting: The Outpatient Services of the Women's Cancer Program at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and participants' homes.

A Descriptive, Retrospective Study of After-hours Calls in Hospice and Palliative Care.

AIMS: Few studies have described after-hours calls in hospice patient care. This retrospective study examines the timing of after-hours telephone triage services; the reasons for access to after-hours hospice and palliative care services; and the predominant nursing interventions offered in after-hours calls in hospice and palliative care. METHODS: A fixed coding scheme was used to code a de-identified after-hours triage phone log of all calls between July 2005 and June 2006 (n=4,434) from a Pennsylvania hospice and palliative care services organization.

Hazardous materials on golf courses: experience and knowledge of golf course superintendents and grounds maintenance workers from seven states.

Background: The golf course industry has a growing Latino work force. Little occupational health research has addressed this work force. This article examines golf course superintendents' and Latino grounds maintenance workers' pesticide knowledge, beliefs, and safety training.

Pesticide safety behaviors in Latino farmworker family households.

Background: Studies to assess pesticide exposure of individuals living in agricultural settings suggest that farmworkers create a "take-home" pathway from the fields to the home that increases exposure risk for non-farmworker household members.

Methods: A survey was conducted with 142 Latino women in farmworker family households in North Carolina to identify predictors of adherence to pesticide safety behaviors that may affect take-home exposure risk. Behaviors included changing work clothes before entering the house, storing and washing contaminated work clothes separately from family clothing, and showering upon returning home.