Clinical trial · Interventional
EXERCISING TOGETHER for Couples Coping With Cancer
EXERCISING TOGETHER © for Couples Coping With Cancer
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
The Exercising Together trial is a single-blind, parallel group, randomized controlled trial comparing 3 arms: Arm 1 (experimental): Exercising Together where couples perform partnered exercise in a supervised, group setting versus two comparator conditions where survivors and partners perform exercise routines separately in either a supervised group setting (Arm 2) or unsupervised at home (Arm 3). All three arms will train for a 6-month period and then be followed 6 months later. Data will be collected at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 months.
Conditions
Conditions (13)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anatomic Stage I Breast Cancer AJCC v8 | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Anatomic Stage II Breast Cancer AJCC v8 | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Anatomic Stage III Breast Cancer AJCC v8 | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Breast Carcinoma | Breast Carcinoma | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Colorectal Carcinoma | Colorectal Carcinoma | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Malignant Solid Neoplasm | Malignant Solid Neoplasm | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Prostate Carcinoma | Prostate Carcinoma | ONTOLOGY_EXACT | 0.98 |
| Stage I Colorectal Cancer AJCC v8 | Malignant Colorectal Neoplasm | CURATED_BROADER | 0.80 |
| Stage II Colorectal Cancer AJCC v8 | Malignant Colorectal Neoplasm | CURATED_BROADER |
Interventions
Interventions (4)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise Intervention (supervised) | Behavioral | — | UNRESOLVED |
| Exercise Intervention (unsupervised) | Behavioral | — | UNRESOLVED |
| Informational Intervention | Other | — | UNRESOLVED |
| Questionnaire Administration | Other | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (3)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Arm I (supervised exercise together)
- description
- Couples perform partnered exercise over 1 hour, 2 days per week in a supervised, group setting remotely for 6 months.
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Exercise Intervention (supervised)
- Other: Questionnaire Administration
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Arm II (supervised exercise separately)
- description
- Survivors and partners perform exercise routines over 1 hour, 2 days per week separately in a supervised group setting remotely for 6 months.
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Exercise Intervention (supervised)
- Other: Questionnaire Administration
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 35 Years
- Maximum age
- 80 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * SURVIVORS ONLY: * Histologically confirmed PC, BC or CRC without evidence of metastatic disease (confirmed by self-report on Health History Questionnaire. In the case a participant isn't able to confirm this criterion, a letter will be sent to his or her physician) * Three years or less from diagnosis date, by month and year, at time of enrollment (confirmed by self-report on Health History Questionnaire. In the case a participant isn't able to confirm this criterion, a letter will be sent to his or her physician) * Completed treatment (e.g., surgery, radiation and/or chemotherapy) \>= 6 weeks prior to enrollment. Concurrent adjuvant hormone therapy is permitted and must have been initiated \>= 6 weeks prior to enrollment. For prostate cancer, androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) may constitute primary treatment and must have been initiated \>= 6 weeks prior to enrollment. For breast cancer, hormone therapy may constitute primary treatment and must have been initiated \>= 6 weeks prior to enrollment. (confirmed by self-report on Health History Questionnaire. In the case a participant isn't able to confirm this criterion, a letter will be sent to his or her physician) * Co-residing with an intimate partner or spouse who is willing to participate (confirmed by self-report on Health History Questionnaire) * SURVIVORS AND SPOUSES/PARTNERS: * Underactive (\< 2 strength training sessions per week, lasting 30 minutes or more per session, at a moderate intensity in the last month) (confirmed by self-report on Health History Questionnaire or by discretion of the principal investigator) Exclusion Criteria: * SURVIVORS AND SPOUSES/PARTNERS * Cognitive difficulties that preclude answering the survey questions, participating in the exercise classes or performance tests, or providing informed consent as determined by the professional opinion of the principal investigator, Dr. Kerri Winters-Stone * A medical condition, movement or neurological disorder, or medication use that contraindicates participation in moderate intensity exercise. Specific contraindications include the following: declared pregnancy, poorly controlled diabetes, recent cardiac event, neuromuscular disease, untreated orthostatic hypertension, recent surgery, acute hernia, acute rheumatoid arthritis, severe memory disorders, severe balance disorder, inability to ambulate (use of an assistive device permitted), inability to stand for 3 minutes, severe hearing or vision problem. (For Survivor: Confirmed by physician clearance; For Spouse/Partner: must answer 'No' to American College of Sports Medicine pre-participation screening questions. If spouse/partner answers 'Yes' to either question they will be considered eligible upon physician clearance. Physician clearance may also be requested at the discretion of the principal investigator. For either: absence of pregnancy in persons who could possibly be pregnant but have not declared a pregnancy at screening, will be further screened with a pregnancy test administered at each testing visit.) * Knowingly unable to attend \> 75% of the intervention classes due to conflict with the designated time of day, days of the week, and/or location for the exercise class which they initially enrolled. (Confirmed by documentation in the Case Report Form titled "CRF - Participant Contact Info\_Exercising Together") * Not fluent in English and therefore incapable of answering survey questions, participating in class, following directions during performance testing, and providing informed consent when English is the language used. (Confirmed by documentation in the Case Report Form titled "CRF - Participant Contact Info\_Exercising Together" or the professional opinion of the Principal Investigator, Dr. Kerri Winters-Stone.)
References
Publications (4)
- DERIVEDWinters-Stone K, Stoyles SA, Dieckmann N, Sokolova AO, Graff JN, Hung A, Wang S, Lyons KS. Loneliness within couples coping with cancer: prevalence, associations with physical and mental health, and potential benefits of dyadic exercise. Front Aging. 2026 Apr 17;7:1812899. doi: 10.3389/fragi.2026.1812899. eCollection 2026. PMID 42077327
- DERIVEDSkiba MB, Dieckmann NF, Lyons KS, Winters-Stone KM. Associations between perceptions of relationship quality and markers of inflammation and insulin resistance among couples coping with cancer. J Cancer Surviv. 2023 Aug;17(4):957-966. doi: 10.1007/s11764-022-01299-5. Epub 2022 Nov 26. PMID 36435952
- DERIVEDWinters-Stone KM, Boisvert C, Li F, Lyons KS, Beer TM, Mitri Z, Meyers G, Eckstrom E, Campbell KL. Delivering exercise medicine to cancer survivors: has COVID-19 shifted the landscape for how and who can be reached with supervised group exercise? Support Care Cancer. 2022 Mar;30(3):1903-1906. doi: 10.1007/s00520-021-06669-w. Epub 2021 Nov 6. PMID 34741653
- DERIVEDWinters-Stone KM, Lyons KS, Dieckmann NF, Lee CS, Mitri Z, Beer TM. Study protocol for the Exercising Together(c) trial: a randomized, controlled trial of partnered exercise for couples coping with cancer. Trials. 2021 Aug 30;22(1):579. doi: 10.1186/s13063-021-05548-3. PMID 34461975