Background: Home-based and supervised prehabilitation programmes are shown to have a positive impact on outcomes in patients with oesophago-gastric (OG) cancer. The primary aim of this study was to establish the feasibility of delivering a digital prehabilitation service.
Methods: Patients undergoing treatment for OG cancer with curative intent were recruited into the study. During the COVID-19 pandemic, patients were offered a digital prehabilitation service. Following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, patients were also offered both a hybrid clinic-based in-person service and a digital service. Implementation and clinical metrics from the two prehabilitation models were compared.
Results: 31 of 41 patients accepted the digital service (75%). Of the people who started the digital programme, 3 dropped out (10%). Compliance with the weekly touchpoints was 86%, and the median length of programme was 12 weeks. Twenty-six patients enrolled in the in-person service. Two patients dropped out (10%). Average compliance to weekly touchpoints was 71%, and the median length of programme was 10 weeks. In the digital group, sit to stand (STS) increased from 14.5 (IQR 10.5-15.5) to 16 (IQR 16-22); p = 0.02. Median heart rate recovery (HRR) increased from 10.5 (IQR 7.5-14) to 15.5 (IQR 11-20) bpm; p = 0.24. There was a significant drop in distress (median 3 (IQR 0-5) to 1 (IQR 0-2); p = 0.04) and a small drop in anxiety (median 3 (0-5) to 2 (0-3); p = 0.22). There was no difference in the postoperative complication rate and length of hospital stay between the two groups.
Discussion: This study has shown that digital prehabilitation can be delivered effectively to patients with OG cancer, with high engagement and retention rates. We observed improvements in some physical and psychological parameters with the digital service, with comparable clinical outcomes to the in-person service.
Keywords: complications; digital health; oesophageal cancer; postoperative; prehabilitation; preoperative; surgery.