Feasibility study of a co-designed Tai-Chi intervention for managing the fatigue, sleep-disturbance and depression symptom cluster for breast cancer survivors in regional Australia.

Status

Not yet recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12626000050358

Enrollment

Registered

2026-01-13

Start date

2026-01-30

Completion date

2026-09-30

Last updated

2026-01-27

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

This study aims to adapt a specific Tai Chi program for a regional Australian community to determine if it is a feasible and helpful way to manage symptoms of fatigue, sleep disturbance, and depression in breast cancer survivors. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are a female aged 18 or older, completed chemotherapy for Stage 1, 2, or 3 breast cancer within the last three years and are currently experiencing moderate levels of tiredness, sleep problems, and low mood. Study details: Participants will attend a weekly, one-hour Tai Chi class (the "Easy 8 Form Yang Style") for a total of 8 weeks. All participants in this study will receive the Tai Chi training. Participants will complete assessments to monitor their symptoms at the start of the study, at the end of the 8-week program, and again four weeks later. It is hoped this research will determine if this Tai Chi program is an acceptable and effective therapy to help improve the well-being and symptom recovery of Australian breast cancer survivors.

Interventions

The intervention is a Tai Chi (TC) form called Easy 8 Form Yang Style Tai Chi, based on a previous small, randomised control trial (RCT) in China with breast cancer (BC) patients experiencing the fatigue, sleep-disturbance and depression symptom cluster (FSDSC) (Yao et al., 2022). The low-intensity TC protocol will be delivered by a trained Tai Chi instructor with a member of the research team supervising sessions, to a group of BC survivors with FSDSC in the form of an 8-week course of weekly group classes, each lasting one hour. A member of the research team will record and document participant attendance at each session to help calculate the proportion of participants who complete a minimum of 80% of the TC course and the retention rate. Reference Yao, L.Q., et al., The effect of an evidence-based Tai chi intervention on the fatigue-sleep disturbance-depression symptom cluster in breast cancer patients: A preliminary randomised controlled trial. European Journal of Oncology Nursing, 2022. 61

Study design

Allocation

Non-randomised trial

Intervention model

Single group

Primary purpose

Treatment

Masking

Open (masking not used)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Breast cancer survivors will be eligible to participate if they: 1. Have been diagnosed with Stage 1, 2 or 3 breast cancer 2. Have completed adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer for at least a month and up to 3 years 3. Have experienced at lease a moderate level (at least 3/10) of tiredness, sleep disturbance, and depressive mood in the previous month.

Exclusion criteria

Breast cancer survivors will be excluded from participating if they: 1. are currently using psychostimulant or hypnotic medications, 2. have elective surgery scheduled during the study period. 3. have stage 4 breast cancer 4. are unable to stand safely for 10 minutes 5. have unstable medical conditions 6. have a cognitive impairment preventing informed consent

Outcome results