Conclusions : The available literature suggests that African American breast cancer survivors adhere to interventions of various modalities and are capable of making modest to significant changes .
Background : African American breast cancer survivors have a higher incidence of estrogen receptor negative and basal-like ( e.g. , triple negative ) tumors , placing them at greater risk for poorer survival when compared to women of other racial and ethnic groups .
While access to equitable care , late disease stage at diagnosis , tumor biology , and sociodemographic characteristics contribute to health disparities , poor lifestyle characteristics ( i.e. , inactivity , obesity , and poor diet ) contribute equally to these disparities .
Lifestyle interventions hold promise in shielding African American survivors from second cancers , comorbidities , and premature mortality , but they are often underrepresented in studies promoting positive behaviors .
This review examined the available literature to document health behaviors and lifestyle intervention ( i.e. , obesity , physical activity , and sedentary behavior ) studies in African American breast cancer survivors .
A Lifestyle Intervention via Email in Minority Breast Cancer Survivors: Randomized Parallel-Group Feasibility Study
Background Our data have indicated that minority breast cancer survivors are receptive to participating in lifestyle interventions delivered via email or the Web , yet few Web-based studies exist in this population . Objective The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility and preliminary results of an email-delivered diet and activity intervention program , “ A Lifestyle Intervention Via Email ( ALIVE ) , ” delivered to a sample of racial and ethnic minority breast cancer survivors . Methods Survivors ( mean age : 52 years , 83 % [ 59/71 ] African American ) were recruited and r and omized to receive either the ALIVE program ’s 3-month physical activity track or its 3-month dietary track . The fully automated system provided tools for self-monitoring and goal setting , tailored content , and automated phone calls . Descriptive statistics and mixed-effects models were computed to examine the outcomes of the study . Results Upon completion , 44 of 71 survivors completed the study . Our “ intention-to-treat ” analysis revealed that participants in the physical activity track made greater improvements in moderate to vigorous activity than those in the dietary track ( + 97 vs. + 49 min/week , P<.001 ) . Similarly , reductions in total sedentary time among those in the physical activity track ( −304 vs. −59 min/week , P<.001 ) was nearly 5 times greater than that for participants in the dietary track . Our completers case analysis indicated that participants in the dietary track made improvements in the intake of fiber ( + 4.4 g/day ) , fruits and vegetables ( + 1.0 cup equivalents/day ) , and reductions in saturated fat ( −2.3 g/day ) and trans fat ( −0.3 g/day ) ( all P<.05 ) . However , these improvements in dietary intake were not significantly different from the changes observed by participants in the physical activity track ( all P>.05 ) . Process evaluation data indicated that most survivors would recommend ALIVE to other cancer survivors ( 97 % ) , were satisfied with ALIVE ( 82 % ) , and felt that ALIVE was effective ( 73 % ) . However , survivors expressed concerns about the functionality of the interactive emails . Conclusions ALIVE appears to be feasible for racial and ethnic minority cancer survivors and showed promising results for larger implementation . Although survivors favored the educational content , a mobile phone app and interactive emails that work on multiple email domains may help to boost adherence rates and to improve satisfaction with the Web-based platform . Trial Registration Clinical Trials.gov NCT02722850 ; https:// clinical trials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02722850 ( Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6tHN9VsPh
Conclusions : The available literature suggests that African American breast cancer survivors adhere to interventions of various modalities and are capable of making modest to significant changes .
Background : African American breast cancer survivors have a higher incidence of estrogen receptor negative and basal-like ( e.g. , triple negative ) tumors , placing them at greater risk for poorer survival when compared to women of other racial and ethnic groups .
While access to equitable care , late disease stage at diagnosis , tumor biology , and sociodemographic characteristics contribute to health disparities , poor lifestyle characteristics ( i.e. , inactivity , obesity , and poor diet ) contribute equally to these disparities .
Lifestyle interventions hold promise in shielding African American survivors from second cancers , comorbidities , and premature mortality , but they are often underrepresented in studies promoting positive behaviors .
This review examined the available literature to document health behaviors and lifestyle intervention ( i.e. , obesity , physical activity , and sedentary behavior ) studies in African American breast cancer survivors .