FARO v1.6
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Fitness AfteR Oesophagectomy- an external pilot trial of the impact of rehabilitation on quality of life after surgery for oesophageal cancer
IRAS ID
277338
Contact name
Alexander Phillips
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
ISRCTN Number
ISRCTN73024784
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The FARO study is a pilot trial to determine if a rehabilitation programme can improve the quality of life of patients that have had oesophageal (gullet) cancer surgery.
Sixty adult patients will participate in the study from one centre in the United Kingdom (Northern Oesophagogastric Unit, Newcastle Upon Tyne) and will be divided into two groups: 30 patients will receive standard care. 30 patients will participate in the rehabilitation programme in addition to routine care. Having two groups will help identify differences in quality of life after surgery with the addition of the programme.
A special computer programme will be used to help allocate patients to a group. This is to ensure that there are no external influences that can impact the decision of which group a patient should be allocated to, thereby making the study as fair as possible.
Patients’ quality of life, strength, physical fitness and diet will be assessed 6 weeks after going home from hospital following their operation and at 3 and 6 months thereafter, to coincide with routine follow-up, using questionnaires. The programme lasts for 12 weeks.
Rehabilitation describes methods to help restore patients to their normal levels of activity. Little is known of the impact of rehabilitation upon the quality of life (wellbeing) among patients who have had an operation for oesophageal cancer.
The main aim of the study is to assess if this programme can improve quality of life. We will also be able to look at the effect of the programme on physical fitness, nutrition and muscle strength. We will be able to collect feedback on the patient experience that can also help us improve the programme and decide if it should be offered to all patients having this type of operation.
REC name
Wales REC 2
REC reference
21/WA/0288
Date of REC Opinion
21 Sep 2021
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion