FITBIT FOR CANCER: STUDY TESTS IF STEP COUNTS PREDICT SURVIVAL
NCT ID NCT01365169
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 16, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study is testing whether wearing a fitness tracker (like a Fitbit) can give doctors a better picture of how active cancer patients are, and whether that activity level relates to how well they are doing overall. About 590 people with various cancers will wear activity monitors and have their physical function assessed by their doctor. The goal is to see if objective activity data can help predict survival and improve patient care.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 590 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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May 2011
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of any stage I - IV colorectal cancer or recurrent colorectal cancer (Arm 1) * Able to speak, read, and write in English (Pre-pilot phase, Arms 1-4) * Able to provide informed consent (Pre-pilot phase, Arms 1-4, PCS study) * Lives in the Houston area (Harris county or a contiguous county) (Pre-pilot phase) * Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) status of 0 - 2, or self-reports being up and about more than 50% of waking hours and able to provide self-care (Arm 1) * Diagnosis of any of the following cancers: stage 1-4b oropharyngeal, hypopharyngeal, nasopharyngeal, salivary gland or oral cavity; stage 3-4b laryngeal; any unknown primary head and neck cancer with cervical metastasis that will be addressed with treatment to bilateral necks and mucosa; or other head and neck cancers medically approved by one of our Radiation Oncology collaborating medical doctors (MDs) (Arms 2 and 3) * History of any cancer, other than non-melanoma skin cancer (Arm 4) * Admitted to being a current smoker or recent quitter upon admission to MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) (Arm 4) * Has a valid home address and functioning home telephone number (Arm 4) * Lives in the Houston or surrounding area, or resides in this same area during the time period that coincides with this study (Arms 1-4) * Patients who will undergo curative pancreatectomy for pancreatic adenocarcinoma, pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, or pancreatic cysts (malignant or benign) (PCS study) * Fluent in English (PCS study) * Must have telephone access and agree to engage with research personnel using telephone (PCS study) * Diagnosis of a metastatic or locally unresectable solid tumor (TAPS study) * Fluent in English (TAPS study) * Age 18 years or older (TAPS study) * ECOG performance status score between 0-3 (TAPS study) Exclusion Criteria: * Major surgery in the past 8 weeks (Arms 1 and 4) * Self-reports hypertension that is not being monitored by a physician and is not being managed with either medication, observation, or lifestyle change (Pre-pilot phase, Arms 1-3) * Overt cognitive difficulty demonstrated by not being clearly oriented to time or person or place (Arms 1-4) * Orthopedic, neurologic, or musculoskeletal disability that would interfere with the functional task of standing on a weight scale (Pre-pilot phase, Arm 2) * Not currently receiving radiation treatment for a cancer listed in the arm-specific inclusion criteria (Arms 2 and 3) * Zubrod performance status \> 2, or self-reports either not being up and about more than 50% of waking hours or unable to provide self-care (Arms 2 and 3) * Currently receiving treatment for a cancer other than those listed in the arm-specific inclusion criteria (exception: the study does not exclude those receiving treatment for non-melanoma skin cancer) (Arms 2 and 3) * History of current oropharyngeal dysphagia unrelated to cancer diagnosis (e.g. dysphagia due to underlying neurogenic disorder) (Arm 3 only) * Active substance use disorder (diagnosed or strongly suspected) (Arm 4) * Currently enrolled in protocol 2014-0712 (PCS study) * No home access to internet (PCS study) * No home WiFi connection (PCS study) * During clinician's pre-surgical evaluation, presents with high risk for non-therapeutic resection related to cancer diagnosis (PCS study) * Underlying unstable cardiac or pulmonary disease or symptomatic cardiac disease (New York Heart Association functional class III or IV) (PCS study) * Recent fracture or acute musculoskeletal injury that precludes the ability to fully bear weight on all 4 limbs in order to participate in an exercise intervention (PCS study) * Poorly-controlled pain with a self-reported pain score of 7/10 at the time of enrollment (PCS study) * Myopathic or rheumatologic disease that impacts physical function (PCS study) * Has a pacemaker or other internal medical device, or reports being pregnant (PCS study) * Currently enrolled in protocol 2017-0198 (PCS study) * Demonstration of overt cognitive difficulty as demonstrated by not being clearly oriented to time or person or place (TAPS study)
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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M D Anderson Cancer Center
RECRUITINGHouston, Texas, 77030, United States
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