Feasibility of implementing a community-based randomized trial of yoga for women undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.

Background: Treatment-related symptoms and decreased health-related quality of life (HRQoL) frequently occur during chemotherapy for breast cancer. Although research findings suggest that yoga can reduce symptoms and Improve HRQoL after treatment, potential benefits of yoga during chemotherapy have received minimal attention.
Objective: To estimate accrual, adherence, study retention, and preliminary efficacy of a yoga intervention compared with an active control group for breast cancer patients during chemotherapy.
Methods: Women with stage I-III breast cancer were recruited from 3 community cancer clinics and randomized to 10 weeks of gentle yoga or wellness education. Depressive symptoms, fatigue, sleep, and HRQoL were assessed at baseline, mid-intervention (Week 5), and after intervention (Week 10).
Results: 40 women aged 29-83 years (median, 48 years; 88% white) were randomized to yoga (n = 22) or wellness education (n = 18). The groups did not differ significantly on baseline characteristics, adherence, or study retention. Participant feedback was positive and comparable between groups. Meaningful within-group differences were identified For sleep adequacy and quantity in yoga participants and for somnolence in wellness-education participants.
Limitations: Small sample size and lack of a usual-care control group.
Conclusions: This study established Feasibility of a community-based randomized trial of yoga and an active comparison group for women undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer. Preliminary efficacy estimates suggest that yoga improves sleep adequacy Symptom severity and interference remained stable during chemotherapy for the yoga group and snowed a trend toward increasing in the control group. The study highlighted obstacles to multisite yoga research during cancer treatment.
Funding/sponsorship: National Cancer Institute (3U10 CA081851, PI; Shaw; R25 CA122061, PI: Avis); Translational Science Institute, Wake Forest School of Medicine.