A need for social support is often expressed after hospitalization post HSCT. Emotional support and positive psychological constructs play an important role in post-HSCT recovery. Interventions generating positive affect can influence the health and well-being of transplant patients. It has been established that coaching in elite sport area leads to performance by playing a decisive role in maintaining the athlete’s feelings of hope and autonomy in order to enable him or her to achieve their goals. In this single-center, prospective, one-arm study, we evaluated, in 32 post-HSCT patients, the acceptability of a coaching program inspired by elite sport coaching. Benefits were evaluated by questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The coaching program was accepted by 97% of the patients. Analysis of the scores on the “Means” sub-dimension of Hope showed a significant increase over time ( p = 0.0249 < 0.05) for every patient. Qualitative analysis of patient’s satisfaction pointed out that this support facilitated the transition to a life without illness in particular in the non-hospital context of coaching sessions. Our results show that a “sport-inspired coaching“ may offer an innovative approach supporting psychological and social recovery after HSCT and helping to start and/or maintain the processes leading to psychological well-being.

Context: In France, 2300 adolescents and young adults (AYAs, 16-25 years old) are diagnosed with cancer each year. As soon as the disease is diagnosed, a number of physical, psychological and social needs may arise. The aim of this study is to develop a tool to measure unmet needs that will allow the specificities of AYAs to be understood while allowing health care staff to mobilise the necessary actors to resolve them. Methods: We developed the Questionnaire nEEd Cancer AYAs (QUEEC-AYAs questionnaire), from two existing questionnaires: the Cancer Needs Questionnaire Young People and the Needs Assessment & Service Bridge. A main sample of 103 AYAs then received and completed the questionnaire in order to conduct an exploratory factor analysis. Results: The final structure of the QUEEC-AYAs is composed of 7 dimensions and 48 items: information (8 items), cancer care team (6 items), Physical health (4 items), Emotional health (14 items), Sexual & reproductive health (6 items), Health behaviors & wellness (4 items), Daily life (6 items). The questionnaire has a good acceptability and all domains have a Cronbach's alphas value above 0.80. Conclusion: The QUEEC-AYAs is the first measure of the psychosocial needs of AYAs available in French. Its systematic use in health care services should improve the coordination of care required by AYAs during and after treatment. Trial registration: This study was approved by the ethics committee of the Paoli-Calmettes Institute (IRB # IPC 2021-041, 2021 May 20).

Introduction : Physical activity has been shown to have many benefits, including reducing cancer-related fatigue (CRF) and improving psychological and physical recovery from breast cancer. Some authors have shown the benefits of aquatic practice, while others have detailed the benefits of group and supervised practice. We hypothesise that an innovative sports coaching proposal could allow a significant adherence of patients and contribute to their health improvement. The main objective is to study the feasibility of an adapted water polo programme (aqua polo) for women after breast cancer. Secondary we will analyse the effect of such a practice on patients’ recovery and to study the relationship between coaches and participants. The use of mixed methods will allow to question precisely the underlying processes. Methods and analysis : This is a prospective, non-randomised, monocentric study with a sample of 24 breast cancer patients after treatment. The intervention is a 20 week programme (1 session per week) of aqua polo in a real sports setting. The variables measured are patient participation, quality of life (QLQ BR23), CRF (R-PFS) and post-traumatic growth (PTG-I) as well as different variables to observe physical capacity (strength with dynamometer, step-test and arm amplitude). The quality of the coach-patient relationship will be evaluated (CART-Q) to explore its dynamics. Participatory observations and interviews will be carried out to report on the interactions between the coach and the participants during the sessions. Ethics and dissemination : Study procedures have been approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Institute (IPC 2019-028) and the National Ethics Committee (SI:20.01.20.54741). Consent is given in person to each participant. The information collected on the participants contain only a non-identifiable study identifier. The results of this protocol will be published in a scientific paper and communicated to the medical staff of the medical center. Trial registration number ID-RCB: 2019-A03003-54 Keywords: Quality of the relationship, Aquatic exercise, Quality of life, Sport Citation Format: Sarah Cuvelier, Charlène Goetgheluck-Villaron, Monique Cohen, Agnès Tallet, Leonor Lopez Almeida, Jean-Marie Boher, Sophia Jowett, Sébastien Justafré, Pierre Dantin, Patrice Viens, Sarah Calvin. Aqua polo: Preliminary feasibility and efficacy study of a programme of adapted, supervised water polo to reduce fatigue and improve women’s psychological and social recovery after breast cancer treatment. A mixed-method design. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2022 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2022 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(5 Suppl):Abstract nr P6-05-40.

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