Aims: Physical activity (PA) is important for people with cancer but is often reduced following treatment. Here, we describe the baseline functional exercise capacity and PA levels in patients with haematological cancer following bone marrow transplant (BMT).
Methods: Within 45 days post-BMT, participants undertook a six-minute walk test, were asked to wear a Fitbit Charge 5 for 7 consecutive days and completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF). Continuous data are presented as means and standard deviation (SD) for normal distributions and median and interquartile range (IQR) for non-normal distributions. Categorical data are presented as frequencies and percentages.
Results: Fifty participants (age 56 +/- 13 yrs; 20 females) were recruited a median (IQR) 34 [27, 38] days after allogeneic (n = 16) or autologous (n = 34) BMT. Six-minute walk distance was 484 (106)m for all participants. This represents 84% of age-based reference values for the test. Objective PA (mean, SD) = 5374 (3109) steps/day and distance = 3.8 (2.3) km/day per participant. Steps = 4605 (3528) after allogeneic BMT and = 5732 (2893) after autologous BMT. Steps and distance were achieved via a median (IQR) 5.5 [0, 25] mins of vigorous, 8.4 [0, 27] mins of moderate, and 145 [111, 216] mins of light PA/ day. Nine (18%) participants self-reported (IPAQ-SF) and 20 (40%) participants objectively met COSA recommendations for moderate to vigorous physical activity.
Conclusion: Functional exercise capacity, daily steps, and moderate to vigorous intensity PA are low 30 days following BMT. This may indicate the unmet need for physical actvity support and rehabilitation programs following BMT.