Trial reportTrials2021
An exercise trial for adults undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy for rectal cancer proves not feasible: recommendations for future trials.
Trial report in Trials, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03049124 (Exercise for Adults Diagnosed With Rectal Cancer), which is not on this map. Cited by 5 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Exercise for Adults Diagnosed With Rectal Cancer: A Feasibility Study
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- The impact of exercise interventions before, during, and following neoadjuvant therapies for locally advanced rectal cancer: a critical review.Acta oncologica (Stockholm, Sweden) · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Effects and duration of exercise-based prehabilitation in surgical therapy of colon and rectal cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2022Pooled it
- Participation and Compliance in a Multimodal Prehabilitation Program for Colorectal Cancer (PACE): A Qualitative Study.Patient preference and adherence · 2024Article
- Women's Preferences for Body Image Programming: A Qualitative Study to Inform Future Programs Targeting Women Diagnosed With Breast Cancer.Frontiers in psychology · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe aim of this paper is to share the methodological problems of an unsuccessful prospective single-arm feasibility trial conducted to evaluate the safety and feasibility of a 12-week progressive exercise intervention for adults undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy for rectal cancer, as well as offer recommendations for future trials.
methodsThe initial plan was to recruit adults diagnosed with rectal cancer and scheduled for neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy over a 12-month period. The exercise intervention was to consist of supervised exercise sessions delivered three times per week by a trained exercise specialist. Feasibility (i.e., recruitment, adherence, and compliance rates) and safety (i.e., adverse events) were to be assessed throughout the trial, and patient-reported and physical health outcomes were to be assessed pre- and post-intervention. After 8 months of open recruitment, we had been unable to successfully enroll patients into our trial. We therefore modified our eligibility criteria to increase the number of patients that could be recruited into our trial, and in turn increase our recruitment rate. We also amended our recruitment procedures to ensure we could reach patients who were either awaiting treatment, receiving treatment, or had completed treatments in the past 5 years. In doing so, we added a research objective, namely to determine the optimal timing of conducting an exercise intervention with adults diagnosed with rectal cancer (i.e., during neoadjuvant treatment, after surgery, during adjuvant treatment, or post-treatment).
resultsMany problems continued to hinder the progress of our trial, particularly the low recruitment rate and the failure to enroll the required sample size that would make our results reliable.
conclusionThis led us to conclude that our trial was not feasible and that it is advisable to consider some elements carefully (e.g., recruitment strategies, communication, and trial location) before designing and conducting future trials. If one or more of these elements still proves to be problematic, trial results risk being compromised and alternative approaches should be considered.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT03049124 . Registered on 02 September 2017.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.