Lifestyle and Subsequent Malignant Neoplasms in Childhood Cancer Survivors: A Report from the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort Study

INTRODUCTION

This study aimed to assess longitudinal associations between lifestyle and subsequent malignant neoplasms (SMNs) in young adult childhood cancer survivors.

METHODS

Members of the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort (SJLIFE) aged ≥18 years and surviving ≥5 years after childhood cancer diagnosis were queried and evaluated for physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), muscle strength, body mass index (BMI), smoking, risky drinking, and a combined lifestyle score. Time to first SMN, excluding nonmalignant neoplasms and nonmelanoma skin cancer, was the outcome of longitudinal analysis.

RESULTS

Survivors (n = 4072, 47% female, 29% smokers, 37% risky drinkers, 34% obese, and 48% physically inactive) had a mean (SD) time between baseline evaluation and follow-up of 7.0 (3.3) years, an age of 8.7 (5.7) years at diagnosis, and an age of 30 (8.4) years at baseline lifestyle assessment. Neither individual lifestyle factors nor a healthy lifestyle score (RR 0.8, 0.4-1.3, p = 0.36) were associated with the risk of developing an SMN.

CONCLUSIONS

We did not identify any association between lifestyle factors and the risk of SMN in young adult childhood cancer survivors.

Movement efficiency in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a report from the St. Jude lifetime cohort study

PURPOSE

Movement efficiency, a measure of neuromuscular biomechanics, may be modified by physical activity. We aimed to assess the risk of and risk factors for low movement efficiency in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

METHODS

Participants underwent an assessment of activity energy expenditure (AEE) with actigraphy, and the gold standard doubly labeled water, where the differences between elimination rates of oxygen and hydrogen from body water are evaluated over a week. Movement efficiency was assessed using the raw residuals of a linear regression between AEEs from accelerometers and doubly labeled water. Elastic-net logistic regressions were used to identify demographic, treatment, and functional variables associated with movement efficiency.

RESULTS

The study cohort included 256 non-cancer controls and 302 ALL survivors (48% female), categorized as efficient (N = 24), normal (N = 245), or inefficient (N = 33) based on their movement efficiency. There was no difference in the odds for poor movement efficiency between survivors (n = 33, 10.9%) compared to controls (n = 23, 9.0%, odds ratio [OR]: 1.19, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.67, 2.10; p = 0.55). In survivors, neuropathy was associated with a higher risk of being inefficient compared to efficient (OR 4.30, 95% CI 1.03-17.96), while obesity (≥ 30 kg/m2) had a protective association (OR 0.18, 95% CI 0.04-0.87).

CONCLUSIONS

Neuropathy was associated with a higher risk of poor movement efficiency in survivors of childhood ALL.

IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS

These results further highlight impairments associated with treatment-induced neuropathy in survivors of childhood ALL.

Lifestyle and subsequent meningioma in childhood cancer survivors: A report from the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort study

BACKGROUND

Lifestyle is associated with meningioma risk in the general population.

AIMS

We assessed longitudinal associations between lifestyle-associated factors and subsequent meningiomas in childhood cancer survivors.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Childhood cancer survivors age ≥18 years in the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort Study were evaluated for body composition, self-reported physical activity, cardiopulmonary fitness, muscle strength, smoking, and alcohol consumption at baseline. Time to first meningioma analyses were performed, adjusted for sex, age at diagnosis and baseline assessment, treatment decade, and childhood cancer treatment exposures. The study included 4,072 survivors (47% female; [mean (SD)] 9 (6) years at diagnosis; 30 (8.5) years at the start of follow-up, with 7.0 (3.3) years of follow-up). 30% of the participants were survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and 29% of the participants had received cranial radiation. During follow-up, 90 participants developed ≥1 meningioma, of whom 73% were survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, with cranial radiation being the strongest risk factor (relative risk [RR] 29.7, 95% confidence interval [CI] 10.6-83.2). Muscle strength assessed by knee extension was associated with a lower risk of developing a meningioma in the adjusted analyses (RR 0.5, 95% CI 0.2-1.0, p = 0.04 for quartiles 3-4 vs. 1). No other lifestyle-associated variable was associated with subsequent meningioma.

CONCLUSION

Independent of cranial radiation, muscle strength was associated with a lower risk of developing a subsequent meningioma in childhood cancer survivors.

Associations between exercise capacity, p16INK4a expression and inflammation among adult survivors of childhood cancer

BACKGROUND

Over 50% of childhood cancer survivors are exercise intolerant, with maximal aerobic capacities comparable to individuals decades older, suggesting early physiologic ageing. In addition, 36% of survivors are obese. Optimal exercise capacity provides a foundation to support daily function and healthy body habitus and is associated with benefits to cognition, cardiovascular health, and longevity. Cellular senescence and inflammation are key mechanisms that drive age-related disease, quantifiable as biomarkers in peripheral blood.

AIMS

This study aimed to evaluate associations between p16INKa, a biomarker of cellular senescence, and inflammation and exercise capacity among adult survivors of childhood cancer.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Eligible survivors were recruited from the St. Jude Lifetime (SJLIFE) Cohort Study. Exercise capacity was assessed by maximal oxygen uptake (VO2, ml/kg/min) obtained via cardiopulmonary exercise testing using a modified Bruce protocol. Body fat (%) was determined from dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Peripheral blood samples were used to evaluate log2 p16INK4a mRNA expression, a biomarker of cellular senescence, and inflammation with high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels. Multivariable regression evaluated associations between p16INK4a, hs-CRP, body fat, and exercise capacity.

RESULTS

Participants included 185 five-year childhood cancer survivors (mean age 36.6 [range 20.1 - 55.7] years, 44% male, 77% non-Hispanic white, 53% leukemia/lymphoma). Compared to males, females had lower peak VO2 (mean ± SD, 22.5 ± 8.2 vs. 28.8 ± 7.7 ml/kg/min, p<0.01), higher p16INK4a expression (9.6 ± 1.2 vs. 9.2 ± 1.2 fold, p=0.02), and hs-CRP concentration (5.9 ± 8.4 vs. 3.3 ± 3.9 mg/L, p=0.01). Among females (n=103), hs-CRP concentration (β -0.2, 95% CI -0.34 to -0.05, p=0.01) and p16INK4a expression (β-5.32, 95% CI 10.42 to -0.22, p=0.04) were inversely associated and statistically significant with peak exercise capacity, with a significant interaction between p16INK4a expression and body fat (β 0.15, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.28, p=0.03). Among males (n=82), p16INK4a expression (β -1.01, 95% CI -2.14 to 0.12, p=0.08), and body fat (β -0.54, 95% CI -0.70 to -0.38, p<0.01) were inversely associated with peak exercise capacity.

CONCLUSION

Inflammation and p16INK4a expression, a biomarker of cellular senescence, are associated with lower exercise capacity in childhood cancer survivors, suggesting potential targets or outcome measures for interventions designed to prevent or remediate accelerated physiologic ageing in this population.

Energy cost of walking in obese survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia: A report from the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort

Purpose

Adult survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have impaired adaptive physical function and poor health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Obesity may contribute to these impairments by increasing the physiological cost of walking. Due to treatment exposures during ALL therapy, survivors' cost of walking may be more impacted by obesity than the general population. Therefore, we examined associations between obesity, persistent motor neuropathy, and energy cost of walking; and examined associations between energy cost of walking, adaptive physical function, and HRQoL, in adult survivors of childhood ALL vs. community controls.

Methods

Obesity was measured via body mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage. The physiological cost index (PCI) was calculated from the six-minute walk test. Adaptive physical functioning was measured using two tests: the timed up and go (TUG) test and the physical performance test. Persistent motor neuropathy was measured using the modified total neuropathy score; HRQoL was measured using the Short-Form-36 questionnaire. The associations between obesity and PCI were evaluated using multivariable linear regressions in adult survivors of childhood ALL (n = 1,166) and community controls (n = 491). Then, the associations between PCI, adaptive physical functioning and peripheral neuropathy were examined using multivariable linear regressions. Finally, to determine the association between obesity, and neuropathy on PCI, while accounting for potential lifestyle and treatment confounders, a three model, sequential linear regression was used.

Results

Obese individuals (BMI > 40 kg/m² and excess body fat percentage [males: >25%; females: >33%]) had higher PCI compared to those with normal BMI and body fat percentage (0.56 ± 0.01 vs. 0.49 ± 0.009 beats/meter p < .01; and 0.51 ± 0.007 vs. 0.48 ± .0006 beats/meter p < .01, respectively). Treatment exposures did not attenuate this association. Increased PCI was associated with longer TUG time in survivors, but not community controls (6.14 ± 0.02 s vs. 5.19 ± 0.03 s, p < .01). Survivors with PCI impairment >95th percentile of community controls had lower HRQoL compared to un-impaired ALL survivors: 46.9 ± 0.56 vs. 50.4 ± 1.08, respectively (p < .01).

Conclusion

Obesity was associated with increased PCI. Survivors with high PCI had disproportionately worse adaptive physical function and HRQoL compared to controls. Survivors with increased energy costs of walking may benefit from weight loss interventions.

Physical activity and fitness in childhood cancer survivors: a scoping review

BACKGROUND

Estimates indicate that nearly eight percent of the over 500,000 survivors of childhood cancer living in the United States are frail in their fourth and fifth decades of life, a phenotype typically seen in geriatric populations. Participation in regular physical activity to improve physical fitness in healthy and diseased populations reduces risk for frail health by increasing physiologic reserve. However, physical activity may not have the same effects on fitness in childhood cancer survivors as it does among their peers with no cancer history.

AIMS

This scoping review seeks to describe associations between physical activity, physical fitness, chronic disease, and mortality in childhood cancer survivors.

METHODS

Relevant literature was identified through a comprehensive search in the PubMed, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Cochrane databases. A narrative synthesis was performed on observational studies that had physical activity or physical fitness clearly defined and compared with chronic disease outcomes.

RESULTS

A total of 595 studies were screened, and results from 11 studies are presented. Childhood cancer survivors who participate in regular physical activity have improved markers of cardiovascular health, decreased risk of overt cardiovascular disease, and decreased risk of all-cause mortality compared to survivors who are not physically active. Childhood cancer survivors who are physically fit have increased neurocognition, and decreased risk of all-cause mortality compared to survivor's who are not fit. The differential effects of physical activity on fitness and health among childhood cancer survivors when compared to peers is potentially related to treatment exposures that damage cardiovascular tissue and impact regenerative potential.

CONCLUSION

Research is needed to determine the optimal timing, frequency, intensity, and duration of physical activity necessary to optimize fitness in childhood cancer survivors.

Frailty and aging in cancer survivors

There are over 15 million survivors of cancer in the United States whose rates of frailty, an aging phenotype, range from just under 10% to over 80%. Frailty impacts not only disease survival but also long-term function and quality of life in children, adolescents, and in all adults diagnosed and/or treated for cancer. This review explains frailty as a construct and model of physiologic well-being. It also describes how frailty at diagnosis impacts cancer outcomes in adult populations and enumerates the prevalence of frailty in different populations of cancer survivors. Biological mechanisms responsible for aging and potentially for frailty among individuals with or who have been treated for cancer are discussed. Finally, promising pharmaceutical and lifestyle interventions designed to impact aging rather than a specific disease, tested in other populations, but likely applicable in cancer patients and survivors, are discussed.

Physical fitness in survivors of childhood Hodgkin lymphoma: A report from the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort

BACKGROUND

There are limited data describing fitness and associated health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in survivors of childhood Hodgkin lymphoma (HL).

PROCEDURE

Fitness was evaluated among 336 adult survivors of childhood-onset HL treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and 327 controls who never had childhood cancer. The controls were frequency matched on age, sex, and race. Associations were examined between chronic disease and fitness and between fitness and HRQoL using a multivariable linear and logistic regression.

RESULTS

Male survivors had lower endurance (6-min walk [6MW] distance 604.4 ± 7.9 m vs 637.0 ± 7.5 m, P < 0.01), and worse neuropathy (modified Total Neuropathy Score [mTNS] 2.7 ± 0.2 vs 1.4 ± 0.2, P < 0.01) compared to controls. Female survivors had lower endurance (6MW distance 564.5 ± 6.9 m vs 590.6 ± 7.0 m, P < 0.01), quadriceps strength (145.7 ± 4.0 vs 163.4 ± 4.0 N·m per kilogram, P < 0.01), and worse neuropathy (mTNS 3.2 ± 0.2 vs 1.4 ± 0.3, P < 0.01) compared to controls. Moderate, severe/disabling, or life-threatening (grades 2-4) neurological conditions were associated with impaired quadriceps strength (odds ratio [OR] 2.94, 99% confidence interval [CI] 1.24-6.96) and impaired endurance (OR 2.96, 99% CI 1.28-6.69). Cardiovascular (OR 2.36, 99% CI 1.00-5.61) and pulmonary (OR 2.78, 99% CI 1.30-5.94) conditions were associated with impaired endurance. Quadriceps strength (β -6.44 ± 2.01, P < 0.01), endurance (β -4.63 ± 1.54, P < 0.01), and neuropathy (β -4.98 ± 1.14, P < 0.01) were associated with a lower physical component summary on the HRQoL.

CONCLUSION

Survivors of childhood HL, particularly those with neurological, cardiac, and pulmonary chronic conditions, are at risk for impaired fitness and HRQoL.