A Novel Behavioral Intervention for Rural Appalachian Cancer Survivors: Participatory Development and Proof-of-Concept Testing of weSurvive (Preprint)
BACKGROUND Addressing the modifiable health behaviors of cancer survivors is important in rural communities disproportionately impacted by cancer, such as those in Central Appalachia. Yet, such efforts are limited and existing interventions may not meet the needs of rural communities. OBJECTIVE To describe the development and proof-of-concept testing of weSurvive, a behavioral intervention for rural, Appalachian cancer survivors. METHODS The ORBIT Model, a systematic model for designing behavioral interventions, informed the study design. An advisory team (n=10) of community stakeholders and researchers engaged in a participatory process to identify desirable features for an intervention targeting rural cancer survivors. The resulting multi-modal, 13-week weSurvive intervention was tested with two cohorts of participants (n=12). Intervention components include in-person group classes and group and individualized telehealth calls. Indicators reflecting five feasibility domains (acceptability, demand, practicality, implementation, and limited-efficacy) were measured using concurrent mixed methods. Pre-post changes and effect sizes were assessed for limited-efficacy data. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to summarize data for other domains. RESULTS Participants reported high program satisfaction (acceptability). Indicators of demand included enrollment of cancer survivors with a variety of cancer types and attrition (8%), recruitment (59%), and attendance (62%) rates. Dietary (59%) and physical activity (83%) behaviors were the most frequently chosen behavioral targets. However, findings indicate that participants did not fully engage with action planning activities, including setting specific goals. Implementation indicators showed 100% researcher fidelity to delivery and retention protocols, while practicality indicators highlighted participation barriers. Pre-post changes in limited-efficacy outcomes regarding cancer-specific beliefs/knowledge and behavior-specific self-efficacy, intentions, and behaviors were in the desired directions and demonstrated small and moderate effect sizes. In regards to dietary and physical activity behaviors, effect sizes for fruit and vegetable intake, snack foods, dietary fat, and minutes of moderate-vigorous activity were small (Cohen’s d = 0.00 to 0.32), while the effect sizes for change in physical activity were small to medium (Cohen’s d = 0.22 to 0.45). CONCLUSIONS weSurvive has the potential to be a feasible intervention for rural Appalachian cancer survivors. weSurvive will be refined and further tested based on study findings, which also provide recommendations for other behavioral interventions targeting rural cancer survivors. Recommendations include adding additional recruitment and engagement strategies to increase demand and practicality as well as increasing accountability and motivation for participant involvement in self-monitoring activities through the use of technology (e.g., text messaging). Furthermore, this study highlights the importance of using a systematic model (e.g., the ORBIT framework) and small scale proof-of-concept studies when adapting or developing behavioral interventions, as doing so identifies the intervention potential for feasibility and identifies areas needing improvement prior to the more time and resource-intensive efficacy testing. CLINICALTRIAL n/a because not an RCT