A Longitudinal Assessment of Frailty in Young Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer

NCT02256137 | Active Not Recruiting

• 2 other identifiers: FRAILTYR01CA174851
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 1,564
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Advances in cancer therapies have led to increasing numbers of adult survivors of pediatric malignancy. Unfortunately, treatment of childhood cancer continues to require agents designed to destroy malignant cell lines, and normal tissue is not always spared. While early treatment- related organ specific toxicities are not always apparent, many childhood cancer survivors report symptoms that interfere with daily life, including exercise induced shortness of breath, fatigue and reduced capacity to participate in physical activity. These symptoms may be a hallmark of premature aging, or frailty. Frailty is a phenotype most commonly described in older adults; it indicates persons who are highly vulnerable to adverse health outcomes. Frailty may help explain why nearly two thirds of childhood cancer survivors have at least one severe chronic health condition 30 years from diagnosis, why childhood cancer survivors are more likely than peers to be hospitalized for non-obstetrical reasons, and why they have mortality rates more than eight times higher than age-and-gender matched members of the general population. Frailty is a valuable construct because it can be distinguished from disability and co-morbidity, and is designed to capture pre-clinical states of physiologic vulnerability that identify individuals most at risk for adverse health outcomes. These investigators have recently presented data indicating that impaired fitness is present in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia, brain tumor and Hodgkin lymphoma. This is relevant because frailty, characterized by a cluster of five measurements of physical fitness, is predictive of chronic disease onset, frequent hospitalization, and eventually mortality in both the elderly and in persons with chronic conditions. Using a frailty phenotype as an early predictor of later chronic disease onset will allow identification of childhood and adolescent cancer survivors at greatest risk for adverse health. An early indicator of those at risk for adverse health will allow researchers to test, and clinicians to provide, specific interventions designed to remediate functional loss, and prevent or delay onset of chronic health conditions. The investigators goals include characterizing physical frailty over a five year time span in a population of young adult survivors of childhood cancer, as well as assessing the association between frailty and the increase in the number and severity of chronic health conditions.

Conditions

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Brain Tumor; Hodgkin Lymphoma

Keywords

Frailty phenotype; Physical fitness; Childhood cancer; Late onset of chronic health conditions; Physical frailty

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Change in proportion of participants who are frail from baseline to 5 years later

  We will use McNemar's test to assess if the prevalence of frailty has significantly increased over the 5-year time period.

  Baseline and 5 years later (± 1 year)

• Association between frailty at baseline and worsening of chronic health conditions 5 years later

  The event of interest, worsening of chronic condition, will be defined as binary outcome which will take value of 1 if, compared to baseline evaluation, a survivor develops a new chronic condition (grade ≥3) or if the chronic condition worsens over the 5-year time period (i.e. goes from grades 1-2 to grade ≥3 or dies due to chronic condition); otherwise it will take a value of 0.

  Baseline and 5 years later (± 1 year)

• Association between demographic and treatment factors and lifestyle on prevalent frailty.

  We will examine the association in a path model (all variables are measured) as lifestyle factors are likely to be mediators of the association between treatment and the frailty outcome at the five year time point. Sex, age at diagnosis, radiation exposure, specific chemotherapy agent doses, and age will be included in the initial theoretical model as exogenous variables and physical activity, diet, smoking status and frailty will be included as endogenous variables. Other variables, like medication use, baseline chronic disease, etc. will be evaluated for their contributions to the outcomes.

  5 years (± 1 year) after baseline evaluation

• Effects of physical activity, diet and smoking on prevalent frailty

  We will examine the association in a path model (all variables are measured) as lifestyle factors are likely to be mediators of the association between treatment and the frailty outcome at the five year time point. Sex, age at diagnosis, radiation exposure, specific chemotherapy agent doses, and age will be included in the initial theoretical model as exogenous variables and physical activity, diet, smoking status and frailty will be included as endogenous variables. Other variables, like medication use, baseline chronic disease, etc. will be evaluated for their contributions to the outcomes.

  5 years (± 1 year) after baseline evaluation

Study Arms (1)

Childhood Cancer Survivors

This study will evaluate 1493 members of the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort Study (SJLIFE) who have completed a baseline functional assessment six or less years ago when 18-45 years of age.

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 45 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

This study will evaluate 1493 members of the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort Study (SJLIFE) who have completed a baseline functional assessment six or less years ago when 18-45 years of age.

You may qualify if:

• Enrollment on the SJLIFE protocol.
• Completed baseline assessment between July 1, 2008 and June 30, 2015.
• Completed the baseline assessment between the ages of 18-45.

You may not qualify if:

• Currently pregnant (assessed by serum pregnancy test).
• Currently receiving treatment for cancer.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Cancer Institute (NCI): collaborator
• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital: lead

Study Sites (1)

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Memphis, Tennessee, 38105, United States

Location

Related Links

• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
• Clinical Trials Open at St. Jude

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma; Brain Neoplasms; Hodgkin Disease; Neoplasms

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Leukemia, Lymphoid; Leukemia; Neoplasms by Histologic Type; Hematologic Diseases; Hemic and Lymphatic Diseases; Lymphoproliferative Disorders; Lymphatic Diseases; Immunoproliferative Disorders; Immune System Diseases; Central Nervous System Neoplasms; Nervous System Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Lymphoma

Study Officials

• Kirsten Ness, PT, PhD

  St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 1, 2014
• First Posted: October 3, 2014
• Study Start: October 8, 2014
• Primary Completion: September 21, 2018
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 1, 2027
• Last Updated: April 23, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-04

Locations

US (1)