Factors associated with programme completion and physical activity adherence in a community-based cancer exercise...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Exercise Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Physical activity enhances cancer patient quality of life, but adherence to guidelines is low.
• Community-based exercise programs offer scalable solutions for cancer survivors.
• Determinants of program completion and sustained engagement are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate factors associated with completing a 12-session community-based cancer exercise program.
• To examine factors related to achieving ≥150 minutes of weekly physical activity post-program completion.
• To consider sociodemographic characteristics, cancer type, prior exercise history, and referral pathway.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from 918 cancer patients in a community exercise program.
• Examination of associations between sociodemographic factors, referral pathway, and program completion using chi-squared tests and logistic regression.
• Assessment of factors influencing post-program physical activity levels (≥150 min/week).

Main Results:

• Ethnicity was significantly associated with program completion; multiple ethnic backgrounds showed higher odds compared to White participants.
• Asian participants had lower odds of meeting physical activity guidelines (≥150 min/week).
• Higher education, homeownership, self-referral, specific referral locations, female gender, and older age (≥72 years) were positively associated with meeting physical activity guidelines. Non-homeownership was the strongest negative factor.

Conclusions:

• Ethnicity emerged as the sole significant factor for program completion.
• Sustained physical activity post-program was influenced by multiple factors, notably non-homeownership.
• Social and environmental factors are crucial for engagement and sustained physical activity in community cancer exercise programs, suggesting targeted interventions are needed.