Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Mar 23, 2025
Date Accepted: Jun 10, 2025
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
The effectiveness of wearable electronic device system (WEDS)-supported physical activity (PA) programs for cancer survivors: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
ABSTRACT
Background:
Physically active lifestyles help cancer survivors alleviate their symptom burden, but cancer survivors may remain physically inactive. Wearable electronic device systems have the potential to improve cancer survivors’ physical activity and improve their quality of life. This meta-analysis aimed to (1) evaluate the effects of wearable electronic device system (WEDS)-supported physical activity (PA) programs for improving physical activity, sedentary behavior, body mass index and quality of life in cancer survivors and (2) investigate the impact of various intervention subgroups.
Objective:
This meta-analysis aimed to (1) evaluate the effects of wearable electronic device system (WEDS)-supported physical activity (PA) programs for improving physical activity, sedentary behavior, body mass index and quality of life in cancer survivors and (2) investigate the impact of various intervention subgroups.
Methods:
The PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, CENTRAL, and MEDLINE databases were searched for randomized controlled trials published before July 31, 2024. Standardized mean differences (SMDs) were calculated to assess their effects on outcomes. Subgroup analysis was conducted to assess whether the effects differed by the formats of the partnering tools and the duration of the intervention. The risk of bias was assessed via the Cochrane risk of bias tool 2.
Results:
46 randomized controlled trials, involving 3713 patients, were included in this meta-analysis. The results indicated that WEDS-supported PA programs improved objectively measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), steps per day and quality of life, and decreased sedentary behavior of cancer survivors. Subgroup analysis revealed that the combination of tools (no less than 2 formats) in WEDS was effective in improving the subjectively reported PA and steps per day, decreasing sedentary behavior, and enhancing quality of life. Long-term (≥12 weeks) interventions improved objectively measured MVPA and steps per day and decreased sedentary behavior.
Conclusions:
We observed that WEDS-supported PA programs are promising for reducing sedentary behavior and improving the level of PA, sedentary behavior, steps per day, and QoL of cancer survivors but have no significant effect on BMI. In the future, the formats of partnering tools, the duration of intervention, and tailored exercise programs that benefit cancer survivors should be carefully considered when developing or updating WEDS-supported PA programs. Clinical Trial: CRD42024582905.
Citation
Request queued. Please wait while the file is being generated. It may take some time.
Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.