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Adult childhood cancer survivors failed to adhere to healthier lifestyles
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Adult survivors of childhood cancer did not demonstrate healthier behaviors than the general population, according to findings from the Chicago Healthy Living Study.
Due to the different health care challenges that childhood cancer survivors face, including increased risk for secondary cancers, heart disease, body weight disorders and psychosocial problems, the American Cancer Society Guidelines on Nutrition and Physical Activity has encouraged survivors to lead healthier lifestyles.
To determine whether survivors followed these recommendations, researchers compared 431 adults who had survived childhood cancer (18.5 ± 8.1 years from diagnosis) with 361 age- and gender-matched control participants. The cancer survivors were aged 18 to 59 years and had been diagnosed with a malignant cancer before aged 21 years.
Participants were interviewed on health habits using a structured interview, including the Block Brief Food Frequency Questionnaire and Modifiable Activity Questionnaire. Based on these data, the researchers calculated compliance with the ACS guidelines as represented by modified adherence scores. A maximum score of 8 represented complete adherence to ACS guidelines.
The researchers compared the scores of the survivors and the controls, and further analyzed the scores of different racial-ethnic groups among the survivors and controls.
According to study results, the childhood cancer survivors and the control group demonstrated no difference in overall ACS adherence scores (4.3 ± 1.5 vs. 4.2 ± 1.5;
Although survivors had, on average, a lower BMI than controls (27.9 ± 7 vs. 29.3 3 ± 7.8;
There were no differences in overall ACS adherence scores between survivors of different racial-ethnic groups. However, there were some differences in specific health characteristics and behaviors; Hispanic survivors had higher BMI vs. white survivors (29.2 ± 7.4 vs. 26.2 ± 5.3; P=.001), and white survivors and controls had a higher daily consumption of alcohol vs. other racial-ethnic groups (P<.017 for all comparisons).
“There is still much room for improvement in educating and encouraging survivors to follow healthier diets and lifestyles,” researcher Chloe A. Berdan, MS, RD, LD, said in a press release. “Adopting such behavior during early adulthood may have a lasting impact on their quality of life and overall survival.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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