Excessive Weight, Breast Cancer, and Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs): Findings From Active Living After Cancer (ALAC) With Environmental Vitality
Trial Snapshot
- Phase
- Not Applicable
- Status
- Active, not recruiting
- Sponsor
- M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
- Enrollment
- 30
- Locations
- 2
- Primary Endpoint
- Outcome Measure
Study Overview
Brief Summary
To learn about breast cancer survivors' and their family members' knowledge of and interest in learning about environmental exposures related to personal care products. Researchers also want to learn if there is a link between excessive weight and chemicals that may affect hormones.
Detailed Description
Primary Objectives:
Excessive body weight, endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and breast cancer are interconnected through disruptions in hormone balance, with notable disparities in risk and outcomes for under-resourced communities. Under-resourced communities face compounding risks including aggressive late-stage diagnoses and healthcare access barriers that contribute to elevated breast cancer mortality. This proposal engages participants from the Acres Homes community and surrounding neighborhoods, including Active Living After Cancer (ALAC) participants, breast cancer survivors not enrolled in ALAC, and family members to assess knowledge and interest in environmental exposure education focused on personal care products, supporting development of the ALAC with Environmental Vitality (ALAC-ENV) intervention and examine associations between prevalent EDCs and excessive weight for breast cancer survivors and their family members.
Specific Aim 1: Determine survivors' and family members' environmental exposure knowledge. Participants (n=30) will participate in interviews to assess their interest and understanding of environmental exposures with an emphasis on personal care products.
Specific Aim 2: Determine the relationship between exposures to prevalent EDCs and BMI. A cross-sectional design to examine associations between BMI and measurements of non-persistent EDCs in urine and wristband samples of cancer survivors and family members.
Findings will inform an R-level grant to develop a randomized trial testing the efficacy of an adapted ALAC-ENV curriculum for dissemination and implementation in community settings, as well as foundation grant support fora cross-sectional study examining the association between body mass index, EDC exposure, and cancer in Acres Homes within the context of non-medical drivers of health.
Study Design
- Study Type
- Observational
- Observational Model
- Case Only
- Time Perspective
- Cross Sectional
Eligibility Criteria
- Ages
- 18 Years to — (Adult, Older Adult)
- Sex
- All
- Accepts Healthy Volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria
- •Live, work, or worship in the Acres Homes community or live in surrounding neighborhoods with similar community characteristics
- •Be 18 years of age and older
- •Self-report a breast cancer diagnosis including subtypes OR be a family member of a survivor
- •If a breast cancer survivor: current, former, or non-participant of the ALAC program
- •Able to communicate in English
Exclusion Criteria
- •Self-report metastatic breast cancer diagnosis
- •Unable to communicate in English
- •Not a breast cancer survivor or family member of a survivor
Arms & Interventions
Pre-Interview Survey
Before your interview, you will complete computer-based surveys about your age, biological sex, gender, income, highest level of education, marital status, insurance status, and health behaviors. The online surveys may take up to 40 minutes to complete.
Intervention: Surveys (Other)
Interview
After completing the pre-interview surveys, you will be scheduled for an interview. The interview will include a warm-up discussion, a short audiovisual presentation describing endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and open-ended questions facilitating discussions on environmental exposures and personal care product usage from your perspective.
Interviews will occur by Zoom video conferencing and will be audio- and video-recorded. The recording will be transcribed (written down) word-for-word, but without your name or any other identifying information. The digital audio and video files will be destroyed after they are transcribed.
Intervention: Video (Other)
Post-Interview Survey
After your interview, you will complete a computer-based survey to help researchers understand the products you use and things that you do in your everyday life, provide urine samples, and wear a wristband.
Intervention: Surveys (Other)
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Outcome Measure
Time Frame: Through study completion; an average of 1 year
Questionnaires/Videos
Secondary Outcomes
No secondary outcomes reported