Mind Your BEAT: A community-based intervention to increase physical activity in rural cancer survivors

Background: Rural cancer survivors are less likely to meet physical activity (PA) recommendations than urban cancer survivors.

Purpose: To use a community-engaged approach to adapt an evidence-based intervention (EBI) for implementation in a rural community and test its effects on PA and psychosocial distress in rural breast cancer survivors.

Methods: The Mind Your BEAT (MYB) intervention combined supervised aerobic exercise, provided through Kourage Health (KH, an EBI) with behavior change skills and mind-body strategies (e.g., mindfulness) delivered by trained research staff. Rural breast cancer survivors were recruited through KH and randomized to participate in KH as usual (control) or MYB. We assessed self-reported weekly leisure time PA (WLA) with the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire and psychosocial distress with the NCCN distress thermometer at baseline and post-intervention (3-months). Participants were categorized as meeting PA recommendations or not (WLA score ≥24 or <24) and reporting high or low psychosocial distress (NCCN score ≥4 or <4).

Results: Rural breast cancer survivors (N=43, M age=66.3±10.0 years) were mostly non-Hispanic (95.1%), White (86.0%), diagnosed with stage 0 (14.3%) or I-II (66.6%) breast cancer, and roughly 5 years post-treatment (M=4.8±7.0 years). Of those randomized (MYB n=22, control n=21), 88.4% were retained post-intervention. MYB participants reported significant increases in WLA from baseline to post-intervention (Δ=24.6) compared to control participants (Δ=-3.9; F(1,36)=13.8, p=.001). The percent of MYB participants meeting PA recommendations increased from 45.5% to 77.8%, compared to the control group, which decreased from 42.9% to 40.0%. Although the percent of MYB participants reporting moderate-to-high distress decreased (63.6% to 33.3%), compared to the control group (61.9% to 55.0%), this was not statistically significant.

Conclusions: MYB improved PA and may reduce distress among rural breast cancer survivors, an at-risk population.

Practical implications: Findings fill a gap on the translation of EBIs into practice in rural community settings.

Funding: NIH/NCI,K07CA222335