Clinical trial · Interventional
Early Versus Delayed Rehabilitation Intervention in Patients With Lung Cancer
Feasibility of an Early Versus Delayed Rehabilitation Intervention in Patients With Lung Cancer on Cancer-related Fatigue: a Pilot RCT
- 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)
In Italy, the incidence of lung cancer for the year 2020 has been estimated at about 41.000 new diagnoses. Patients with lung cancer experience debilitating symptoms caused by the disease itself and cancer treatments, such as dyspnea and fatigue, which reduce physical function and quality of life (QoL). It is estimated that 90% of patients undergoing chemotherapy and 57% of patients undergoing lung resection suffer of Cancer-Related Fatigue (CRF). Previous studies have shown that educational interventions and aerobic and resistance exercise are effective in improving CRF and QoL in patients with lung cancer. However, to date the optimal dose, mode and timing to deliver the intervention during the care pathway for lung cancer patients is unknown. Tolerability and frequency of cancer treatment could be a barrier to adherence to the intervention. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the feasibility of a rehabilitation intervention aimed at improving CRF with respect to timing of delivery: early vs delayed rehabilitation in lung cancer patients.
Conditions
Conditions (1)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lung Cancer | Malignant Lung Neoplasm | CURATED_EXACT | 0.92 |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pulmonary rehabilitation | Behavioral | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (2)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Early pulmonary rehabilitation (RP)
- description
- RP immediately after enrollment.
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Pulmonary rehabilitation
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Delayed pulmonary rehabilitation (RP)
- description
- RP after 3 months after enrollment.
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Pulmonary rehabilitation
Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
- Feasibility - Adherence rate to the outpatient RP sessions
- timeFrame
- At 3 and 6 months after baseline
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Newly diagnosed of stage II and III lung cancer (NSCLC) candidates for anticancer therapies (chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, or combinations thereof), associated or not with surgery. In the last case, patients will be included at least 30 days after surgery. * Prognosis ≥ 12 months * At least 18 years old * Recruited from the pneumology, oncology, radiotherapy, and physical medicine and rehabilitation unit of the Azienda Unità Sanitaria Locale - IRCCS of Reggio Emilia * Willing and able to give written informed consent Exclusion Criteria: * Clinical disorders that contraindicate participation in a moderate exercise program (e.g. preexisting severe physical disabilities, major cognitive or sensory deficits, severe psychiatric disorders, language barrier, etc.). * NSCLC stage IV * Patients who are candidates for surgery alone * Patients who are candidates for neoadjuvant therapy
References
Publications (1)
- DERIVEDFugazzaro S, Mainini C, Pecorari A, Denti M, Galavotti MB, Messori M, Costi S, Ciammella P, Falco F, Zanelli F, Cavuto S, Bressi B. Feasibility of an early versus delayed rehabilitation intervention in patients with lung cancer on cancer-related fatigue: a pilot RCT. Future Oncol. 2026 Jan;22(2):147-156. doi: 10.1080/14796694.2025.2607632. Epub 2026 Jan 6. PMID 41496492