Stepping Into Survivorship: Harnessing Behavioral Economics to Improve Quality of Life in Ovarian Cancer

Nearly 50% of ovarian cancer survivors experience poor quality of life, fatigue, and anxiety
after completing surgery and chemotherapy to treat their disease. Moreover, many ovarian
cancer survivors become deconditioned during treatment; 40% report significant drops in
activity during the year after diagnosis, and only 20% meet the recommended guidelines for
physical activity.

Randomized trials of interventions are urgently needed to determine whether increasing
physical activity improves outcomes in ovarian cancer survivors. In other cancers, physical
activity improves quality of life and mental health, while reducing the risk of cancer
recurrence and death. To date, however, most studies have focused on patients with curable
breast and prostate cancers. The effects of physical activity on understudied populations,
including ovarian cancer survivors, are unknown. Furthermore, although ovarian cancer
survivors report an interest in participating in home-based walking programs, few formal
programs exist.

Stepping into Survivorship is a randomized clinical trial designed to test the effectiveness
of wearable fitness trackers with or without a game-based mobile health intervention that
leverages social support to increase physical activity in ovarian cancer survivors. At the
start of the study all participants will track their daily step counts using a wearable
fitness tracker (e.g. Fitbit) to determine how many steps they walk in an average day. Next,
they will set an increased step-goal and receive daily, individualized feedback based upon
their performance.

Participants randomized to the game-based intervention will also choose a team partner (i.e.
family or friend) to receive a wearable fitness tracker and together they will track their
steps, earning non-financial micro-incentives (e.g. points, levels, badges) when they achieve
their collaborative goals. This game-based mobile health intervention is designed to enhance
collaboration, accountability, peer support, and ultimately physical activity among ovarian
cancer survivors and their friends/family members.

This research is being done to improve participants' quality of life. The investigators hope
that the use of wearable fitness trackers with or without a game-based mobile health
intervention will help participants increase their physical activity and improve quality of
life.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Patients will be eligible if they have newly diagnosed ovarian cancer

- Are ≤6 months of completing chemotherapy

- Read English

- Do not have cognitive, visual, or orthopedic impairments that would preclude
participation

- Plan to continue treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Exclusion Criteria:

- Participants will be excluded if they are already participating in an mHealth
intervention

- Are unable to ambulate

- Do not have a smartphone to transmit data from the wearable tracker