Tailored home exercise program for women during breast cancer chemotherapy
Supportive Tailored Exercise Program for Survivors of Breast Cancer (STEPS-BC)
This program guides women receiving anthracycline chemotherapy to do personalized aerobic and strength exercises at home to help maintain fitness, heart health, and reduce fatigue.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Virginia Commonwealth University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Richmond, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11269209 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would be randomized to receive a home-based, tailored physical activity program plus a healthy living program or the healthy living program alone while you receive adjuvant anthracycline chemotherapy. The intervention delivers aerobic and strength activities adapted to your lifestyle, remote instruction from exercise and behavioral specialists, and patient community support so you can exercise safely during treatment. The trial will enroll about 150 women across multiple centers and measure exercise capacity, left ventricular heart function, fatigue, and health-related quality of life before, during, and after chemotherapy. Most activities are done at home with monitoring and coaching from the central study team.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Women with breast cancer who are starting or receiving anthracycline-based adjuvant chemotherapy and who are medically able to do light-to-moderate exercise would be ideal candidates.
Not a fit: People not receiving anthracycline chemotherapy, those with medical contraindications to exercise, or those unable to participate in home-based activities may not benefit from this program.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could help preserve heart function and fitness, reduce treatment-related fatigue, and improve quality of life for women undergoing chemotherapy.
How similar studies have performed: Earlier feasibility work showed the intervention is practical and safe, but this larger randomized trial is needed to confirm clinical benefits.
Where this research is happening
Richmond, United States
- Virginia Commonwealth University — Richmond, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hundley, William Gregory — Virginia Commonwealth University
- Study coordinator: Hundley, William Gregory
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.