Acceptability and feasibility of a parent‐targeted dietary intervention in young survivors of childhood cancer: “Reboot”

Abstract

Background Assess the acceptability and feasibility of delivering Reboot, a telephone dietary intervention to parents of pediatric cancer survivors. The research question asks whether tailored dietary support is acceptable and feasible to deliver to parents of young cancer survivors who have recently completed cancer treatment? Procedure Pre‐post study. Nineteen parents of pediatric cancer survivors (aged 2‐13 years) in remission, who had received cancer treatment at a tertiary children's hospital, less than 5 years prior to the intervention. Participants received four weekly 45‐min telephone sessions led by a psychologist or dietitian and one postintervention booster session 6 weeks later. Sessions addressed strategies to increase children's vegetable and fruit intake. Results Of the 19 parents who started the intervention, 14 completed all sessions within 8 weeks and 12 completed the booster session within 10 weeks. The mean session duration was 47 min. All participants reported that Reboot increased their confidence and knowledge about promoting healthy eating habits to their child. Conclusions Reboot is an acceptable intervention in young cancer survivors aimed at increasing vegetable and fruit intake after cancer treatment. Implications for cancer survivors: The results from the Reboot pilot provides preliminary evidence that a targeted intervention to improve the diets of childhood cancer survivors may be feasible with future modification.

Navigating nutrition as a childhood cancer survivor: Understanding patient and family needs for nutrition interventions or education

“…This trifecta of treatment side effects, negative feeding practices and poor messaging from health professionals creates a challenging environment to optimise nutrition. While interventions exist to address unhealthy behaviours among survivors and can include strategies to address negative feeding practices, 29,35,36 no studies have examined the nutrition messages provided by health professionals within the multidisciplinary team.…”

“…An existing program that focuses on behaviour change strategies to restore healthy eating practices in survivors using an online, parent-led intervention is Reboot-Kids ® , 40 which has demonstrated an increase in parent confidence in providing more nutritious foods to survivors. 36 Using an online platform aligns with the desire for participant autonomy in intervention timing. Contact with a dietitian/feeding therapist may be more appropriate for concerns such as food aversions, sudden weight changes, or nasogastric tube weaning.…”

Nutritional Status at Diagnosis as Predictor of Survival from Childhood Cancer: A Review of the Literature

“…Currently, several approaches are being implemented targeting the family-based nutrition and cooking education of parents and guardians of children with cancer [ 71 , 72 , 73 ]. Among such interventions, web-based dietary and cooking intervention approaches have gained great attention among parents and young patients [ 74 , 75 , 76 ]. Preliminary results have shown that early interventions resulted in better nutrition practices, i.e., lower sodium consumption [ 73 ].…”

Navigating Nutrition as a Childhood Cancer Survivor: Understanding Patient and Family Needs for Nutrition Support

“…Existing educationbased interventions promoting healthy lifestyles among CCS have been effective [26,31], and similar to previous research [34,35], the interviews in the present study highlighted the importance of family involvement. An existing programme that focuses on behaviour change strategies to restore healthy eating practices using an online, parent-led intervention is Reboot-Kids ® [36], which has demonstrated an increase in parent con dence in providing more nutritious foods to CCS [32]. Using an online platform aligns with the desire for participant autonomy in intervention timing.…”

“…This trifecta of treatment side effects, negative feeding practices, and poor messaging from health professionals creates a challenging environment to optimise nutrition. While interventions exist to address unhealthy behaviours amongst CCS and can include strategies to address negative feeding practices [26,31,32], no studies have examined the nutrition messages provided by health professionals within the MDT.…”