scholarly journals The remote monitoring of gastrointestinal cancer patients’ performance status and burden of symptoms via a consumer-based activity tracker: qualitative focus group study (Preprint)

JMIR Cancer ◽  
10.2196/22931 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alireza Ghods ◽  
Armin Shahrokni ◽  
Hassan Ghasemzadeh ◽  
Diane Cook
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Remote Monitoring ◽  
Gastrointestinal Cancer ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Focus Group Study ◽  
Activity Tracker

The remote monitoring of gastrointestinal cancer patients’ performance status and burden of symptoms via a consumer-based activity tracker (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alireza Ghods ◽  
Armin Shahrokni ◽  
Hassan Ghasemzadeh ◽  
Diane Cook
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Remote Monitoring ◽  
Gastrointestinal Cancer ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Step Count ◽  
Remote Monitoring System ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
Activity Trackers ◽  
Steps Per Day ◽  
Ecog Ps

BACKGROUND Patients with cancer spend most of their time in their homes, but their condition is under constant change as a result of the treatment they receive. Patients' performance status (PS) and their symptoms assessments have typically only been collected during clinic visits. Developing a secure and reliable remote monitoring system is a necessity that can be achieved with an inexpensive consumer-based activity tracker. The real-time data captured by wearable activity trackers could provide a dynamic view of patients for clinicians to make an informed treatment. OBJECTIVE This study aims to assess the practicality of a consumer-based activity tracker for remote monitoring of gastrointestinal cancer patients. METHODS Twenty-seven consenting patients (63% male, median age 58 years) wore a consumer-based activity tracker seven days before chemotherapy, and fourteen days after receiving their first treatment. The clinician assessed patients' ECOG-PS and Memorial Symptom Assessment Checklist-Short Form (MSAS-SF) for patients pre- and post-chemotherapy. The statistical correlation between ECOG-PS and MSAS-SF of patients with their step count was assessed. RESULTS The daily step count had the highest correlation with the patients' ECOG-PS after chemotherapy (P = 6.4e-11). The patients with higher ECOG-PS experienced a higher fluctuation in their step count. The patients who walked more (mean: 6071 steps per day) pre-chemotherapy and (mean: 5930 steps per day) post-chemotherapy had a lower MSAS score (less burden of symptoms) compared to patients who walked less (mean: 5205 steps per day) pre-chemotherapy and (mean: 4437 steps per day) post-chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates the feasibility of inexpensive, consumer-based activity trackers in monitoring patients’ PS and MSAS in the gastrointestinal cancer population. The findings need to be validated in a larger population for generalizability.

Supporting Family Caregivers of Advanced Cancer Patients: A Focus Group Study

2017 ◽  
Vol 66 (5) ◽  
pp. 867-879 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rinat Nissim ◽  
Sarah Hales ◽  
Camilla Zimmermann ◽  
Amy Deckert ◽  
Beth Edwards ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
Focus Group Study

What can we do for gastrointestinal cancer patients with poor performance status (PS)?

2007 ◽  
Vol 25 (18_suppl) ◽  
pp. 19629-19629
Author(s):  
K. Shitara ◽  
M. Munakata ◽  
O. Muto ◽  
M. Kasai ◽  
Y. Sakata
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Tumor Markers ◽  
Gastrointestinal Cancer ◽  
Survival Benefit ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Poor Performance Status ◽  
Ecog Ps ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Measurable Lesion

19629 Background: The prognosis of advanced gastrointestinal cancer patients, especially those with poor PS, is generally dismal. Needless to say, such patients are ineligible for participation in clinical studies. However, there are many patients with poor PS who wish to receive chemotherapy. Methods: From June 2000 to October 2006, a total of 508 patients with advanced cancer, including 304 gastrointestinal cancer patients, were treated by chemotherapy in our hospital. Of these, 110 gastrointestinal cancer patients (gastric=35, colorectal=30, pancreatic=26, biliary tract=11, esophageal=8) had poor PS (ECOG PS 3 = 68 patients, PS 4 = 42 patients). In 103 patients with at least one measurable lesion, a partial response according to RECIST criteria was obtained in 13 patients (12.6%). In 60 patients with ascites (47 patients), pleural effusion (25 patients), or both (12 patients), 11 of the patients (18.3%) achieved decreased fluid accumulation. A decline in tumor markers (>25%) was observed in 28 patients. Improvement in PS was seen in 13 patients (11.8%). As a result, 35 patients (31.8 %, including 9 patients with PS 4) achieved a tumor response, a decrease in accumulated fluid, or a decline in tumor markers, which resulted in a survival benefit compared to the other 75 patients without effect (6.4 months vs. 2.3 months, p<0.001). Alleviation of some symptoms was observed in 28 out of 98 symptomatic patients (30.4%). A better response and/or a decline in tumor markers significantly correlated with alleviation of symptoms (p<0.001). No treatment related death was seen. Conclusions: With regard to response rate, chemotherapy was rarely effective for patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer with poor PS. However, more than a few patients gained a certain survival benefit and alleviation of symptoms. Thus, chemotherapy may be warranted in cases of patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer who wish to receive chemotherapy despite the low possibility of response. No significant financial relationships to disclose.

scholarly journals Ubiquitous Assessment of the Recovery of Cancer Patients Using Consumer-Level Activity Trackers

Proceedings ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (19) ◽  
pp. 1204
Author(s):  
Salvador Moreno ◽  
Miguel Damas ◽  
Ignacio Rojas ◽  
Victor Amezcua ◽  
Pilar Gutierrez-Pastor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Recovery Process ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Treatment Needs ◽  
Commercial Activity ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
Activity Trackers ◽  
Intervention Trials

Performance Status (PS) variability is a powerful tool to evaluate overall condition, treatment needs and survival chances of cancer patients. Traditionally, its assessment has relied on the experience of oncologists when interpreting results of clinical tests and when interviewing the patients. Meanwhile, consumer-level activity trackers have obtained good results in behavior-change oriented intervention trials and Fitbit devices have demonstrated enough reliability to provide objective data related to physical activity, but the clinical possibilities of the data collected has been neglected. This work presents a system design for ubiquitous assessment of PS by means of objective and quantifiable data from different sources: medical history, self-reported quality-of-life questionnaires and a commercial activity tracker Fitbit Alta HR. The system proposed aims to contextualize and model the recovery process of breast cancer patients during chemotherapy treatment.

Analysis of systemic therapy delivery for gastrointestinal cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (29_suppl) ◽  
pp. 301-301
Author(s):  
Robert Power ◽  
Claire O'Donohoe ◽  
Cathy Enright ◽  
Louise Glennon ◽  
Lisa McDowell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Clinical Pathway ◽  
Gastrointestinal Cancer ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Institutional Ethics ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
The Impact

301 Background: As of June 16, 0.51% of the Irish population has had a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19, and incidence of new infections peaked on April 10. Cancer patients treated with systemic anticancer therapy (SACT) may have increased risk of contracting COVID-19, and greater incidence of adverse outcomes. We aimed to assess the impact of a COVID-19 SACT clinical pathway on the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in gastrointestinal cancer patients, and alterations to SACT regimens attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A COVID-19 SACT clinical pathway for patients undergoing treatment in a haematology oncology day care (HODC) service was designed and implemented. Interventions included visitor restrictions, telephone clinics, mandatory masks and temperature checks for staff, social distancing at all workspaces, and establishment of a COVID-19 screening pod. A prospective registry of all gastrointestinal cancer patients attending the HODC clinic between February 1 and April 31 2020 was initiated following institutional ethics board approval. Clinical data were retrieved from electronic health records including demographics, performance status, comorbidities, SACT regimen (including changes to treatment), SARS-CoV-2 testing, and radiologic treatment responses. Results: In this period, 175 gastrointestinal (88 gastroesophageal, 8 hepatobiliary, 79 colorectal) cancer patients attended 931 HODC outpatient clinics. Of this, 41 (23%) underwent at least one SARS-CoV-2 test. No patients tested positive. Two gastroesophageal cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy presented with SARS-CoV-2-negative suspected viral pneumonia and respiratory failure; both required intensive care unit admission and one died. SACT regimen was altered in 48 (27%) patients due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Changes involved prescription of alternative oral therapies (21; 12%), treatment breaks (17; 9%), and stopping treatment (11; 6%). Most (88%) regimen changes took place in a single 3-week period (6-27 March) that coincided with the announcement of government-mandated social distancing measures. Conclusions: Implementing a COVID-19 SACT clinical pathway resulted in a low incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in gastrointestinal patients undergoing systemic treatment. SACT regimen changes were common; prospective monitoring of this cohort is ongoing to determine whether these alterations affect patient outcomes.

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