Health Education Intervention in Reducing Weight Gain in Patients With Newly Diagnosed Stage I-IV Breast Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy

This pilot clinical trial studies a health education intervention in reducing weight gain in patients with newly diagnosed stage I-IV breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy. A health education program may reduce weight gain and improve quality of life in patients undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

I. To determine the feasibility of conducting a weight maintenance intervention, in terms of recruiting and retaining participants.

II. To obtain preliminary data on the effectiveness of an intervention to prevent weight gain on body composition, self-efficacy, perceived stress, fatigue, depression, exercise capacity, and health-related quality of life (HRQL). Changes in physical activity and dietary intake will also be monitored.

III. To determine if the weight control protocol requires refinement for use in a randomized controlled trial.

IV. To determine how many participants opt to enroll in a short-term healthy lifestyle program at completion of the final testing visit.

OUTLINE:

Participants undergo four 30-60 minute health education sessions and 3 follow-up phone sessions with an interventionist trained in behavioral science, physical activity and nutrition, and positive psychology over 12 months.

EDUCATION SESSION I: Participants receive information from the interventionist concerning healthy diet choices and exercise and begin to keep a food log.

EDUCATION SESSION II: Interventionists review information from session I and patient food logs. Participants receive recommendations for exercise and set activity goals.

EDUCATION SESSION III: Participants receive information on how to determine portion sizes and the importance of strength training and building lean muscle mass.

EDUCATION SESSION IV: Interventionists review information from the previous 3 sessions and discuss the importance of planning and goal setting with participants. The interventionist also discusses physical and mental barriers to exercise.

After completion of the education sessions, patients receive 3 phone calls at times convenient to the patient to answer questions about information learned in previous educational sessions.

After completion of study, participants are followed up for 12 months.

Eligibility Criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

* Women with newly-diagnosed breast cancer, stage I-IV who are within first two rounds of chemotherapy
* 3.1.2 Women who are receiving, or scheduled to receive, one of the following classes of therapy in the adjuvant or neo-adjuvant setting: anthracyclines, taxanes, cyclophosphamide, or trastuzumab. Participants must be within their first two rounds of chemotherapy - Body mass index (BMI) \> 20
* Treating physician approval to participate in study
* Ability to understand and the willingness to sign an Institutional Review Board (IRB)-approved informed consent document

Exclusion Criteria:

* Diagnosis of recurrent breast cancer
* Women who are already participating in a formal or medically prescribed weight management program
* Women who have already completed more than two rounds of chemotherapy
* Women who are pregnant or nursing