# Managing Fatigue Using Virtual Reality for Post-Operative Lung Cancer Patients

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER · 2021 · $582,287

## Abstract

Project Summary: Persons with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) report significantly more unmet
supportive care needs than other cancer populations, yet they are among the most vulnerable and least
studied. Two of the most prevalent unmet supportive care needs include overcoming fatigue and attaining
adequate exercise to meet physical demands of daily living. Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a prevalent,
persistent, and distressing symptom in the NSCLC population. CRF correlates with greater severity of 15 other
symptoms, leading to lower physical function for persons with NSCLC. Among 13 core symptoms across 3,106
breast, colorectal, prostate, and lung cancer patients, persons with lung cancer were the most symptomatic,
with moderate to severe fatigue being reported with the greatest prevalence. While surgery is the standard
curative treatment for NSCLC, no formal guidelines exist for post-surgical rehabilitation. We propose a
randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a novel rehabilitative intervention for persons with NSCLC after surgery.
Our intervention promotes self-management of CRF and tests the intervention's impact on CRF severity and
fatigability with analysis by age. Our preliminary data included a two-arm RCT (R21 CA164515) incorporating
the proposed intervention, where we exceeded goals for recruitment (67%), retention (97%), adherence (93%),
and acceptability. Our 6-wk exercise intervention demonstrated preliminary efficacy in significantly reducing
CRF severity and fatigability as compared to usual care, with mean CRF levels restored to levels lower than
pre-surgery. The exercise group's functional performance exceeded usual care. No adverse events were
reported; participants had a mean age of 67 with a mean of 8 comorbid conditions. Our long-term goal is to
develop interventions to increase perceived self-efficacy for CRF self-management in order to improve CRF,
symptom status, functional status, and quality of life (QOL) for persons with NSCLC. Our objective in this
application is to determine the efficacy, optimal timing, and sustainability of our innovative home-based
exercise intervention. This study has the potential to transform the current standard by providing a
rehabilitative exercise intervention after surgery. The intervention is home-based, self-paced, and builds in
duration upon discharge from the hospital after surgery. Aim 1: Determine efficacy by comparing the
immediate intervention group with wait-list control (usual care) and attention control by age. Aim 2: Determine
efficacy of initiating the exercise intervention 6 wks post-discharge and compare results with the immediate
intervention group for all ages. Aim 3: Determine the immediate intervention's sustainability by analyzing 3a)
rates of extension, adherence, and retention; 3b) acceptability; and 3c) efficacy of primary and secondary
outcomes. IMPACT: Our results will provide a novel exercise intervention, and its optimal timing, and fills the
gap for a vulnerab...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10240579
- **Project number:** 5R01CA205025-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** AMY JUDE HOFFMAN
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $582,287
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-04-01 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10240579

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10240579, Managing Fatigue Using Virtual Reality for Post-Operative Lung Cancer Patients (5R01CA205025-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10240579. Licensed CC0.

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