Social Health, Activity Behaviors, and Quality of Life Among Young Adult Cancer Survivors

July 29, 2026 updated by: University of Southern California

Social Health, Activity Behaviors, and Quality of Life Among Young Adult Cancer Survivors: A Longitudinal Study

This longitudinal observational study examines how social health, including social support, social roles, loneliness, social anxiety, and social network characteristics, relates to physical activity, sedentary time, and quality of life among ethnically and racially diverse adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients aged 18-39 years. The study follows participants over four clinically significant timepoints in the first 12 months after diagnosis (baseline near diagnosis, mid treatment, near end of treatment, and 12 month follow up). At each timepoint, patients complete questionnaires and wear a wrist worn accelerometer for one week.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

I. Characterize trajectories of social health over the course of cancer treatment and into early survivorship; II. Investigate longitudinal and potentially reciprocal associations between social health and activity behaviors (physical activity and sedentary time) and their relationship to quality of life; III. Examine whether gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and symptom burden moderate these associations.

OUTLINE:

Patients complete surveys over 40 minutes and wear an actigraph GT3X-BT accelerometer continuously for 7 days at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

118

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

United States
- California
  - Los Angeles, California, United States, 90033
    - USC / Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
  - Los Angeles, California, United States, 90033
    - Los Angeles General Medical Center
- Texas
  - Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
    - MD Anderson Cancer Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients diagnosed and/or treated with cancer between ages 18-39 at University of Southern California (USC) hospitals.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Age 18-39 years at cancer diagnosis.
Newly diagnosed (within past 3 months) with one of the following cancer types commonly seen in AYAs: testis, breast, thyroid, cervix, colorectal, brain/central nervous system, non Hodgkin lymphoma, uterine, melanoma, bones and joints, ovary, Hodgkin lymphoma, lung, or gastric cancer.
Stage I-IV for solid tumors (AJCC 8th edition TNM staging) or I-IV for lymphomas (Ann Arbor staging).
Receiving care at a participating USC affiliated hospital (USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck Hospital of USC, or Los Angeles General Medical Center) or MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Clinician assessed expected survival greater than 12 months at time of diagnosis.
Able to complete questionnaires and wear a wrist worn accelerometer.
English or Spanish speaking.

Exclusion Criteria:

Leukemia (excluded due to longer treatment duration and different care trajectory).
Primary language other than English or Spanish.
Cognitive or physical limitations that preclude completion of surveys or wearing an accelerometer.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Number of groups / cohorts

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Observational (actigraph, surveys) Patients complete surveys and wear an actigraph GT3X-BT accelerometer continuously for 7 days at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months.	Other: Survey Administration Complete survey Other: Medical Device Usage and Evaluation Wear an actigraph GT3X-BT accelerometer Other: Quality-of-Life Assessment Complete survey Other Names: Quality of Life Assessment

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in social role functioning Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using the PROMIS Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities Short Form 4a, which measures limitations in participation in usual social roles and activities due to health (higher scores indicate better participation).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in perceived emotional support Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using the PROMIS Emotional Support Short Form 4a, which measures perceived availability of people who provide emotional support, such as care, understanding, and someone to listen (higher scores indicate more emotional support).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in perceived informational support Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using the PROMIS Informational Support Short Form 4a, which measures perceived availability of people who provide advice, information, and guidance (higher scores indicate more informational support).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in perceived instrumental support Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using the PROMIS Instrumental Support Short Form 4a, which measures perceived availability of people who provide practical help and assistance with tasks (higher scores indicate more instrumental support).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in loneliness score Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using the UCLA Loneliness Scale short form, which measures subjective feelings of loneliness and social disconnection (higher scores indicate greater loneliness).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in social anxiety symptoms Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using the Mini Social Phobia Inventory (Mini SPIN), a brief validated measure of social anxiety and fear of social interactions (higher scores indicate greater social anxiety).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in social network density Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using a study developed egocentric social network questionnaire in which participants list up to 10 important adult social contacts and indicate which contacts know each other; density is calculated as the proportion of possible ties that are present (higher values indicate a more densely connected network).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in proportion of supportive social ties Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using a study developed egocentric social network questionnaire that measures whether each named social contact provides social support and encouragement for physical activity; the outcome is the proportion of social ties providing support (higher values indicate a more supportive network).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in frequency of social contact Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using a study developed egocentric social network questionnaire that captures how often participants interact with each named social contact; the outcome is the average reported frequency of contact across alters (higher values indicate more frequent social contact).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in total daily physical activity Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using a wrist worn ActiGraph GT3X BT accelerometer worn for 7 consecutive days at each time point. Raw data are converted to monitor independent movement summary (MIMS) units, and total daily physical activity is represented by average daily MIMS units across valid wear days (higher values indicate more physical activity).	Baseline up to 1 year
Change in total daily sedentary time Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Assessed using a wrist worn ActiGraph GT3X BT accelerometer worn for 7 consecutive days at each time point. Sedentary time is calculated from accelerometer data as average minutes per day spent in sedentary behavior (e.g., low movement periods while awake) across valid wear days (higher values indicate more sedentary time).	Baseline up to 1 year

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in Quality of Life Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Patient reported quality of life using Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Global Health 10, assessed at baseline and 12 month follow up. This is a 10-item patient-reported questionnaire measuring general physical, mental, and social health. Most questions use a 1-to-5 point scale. Higher numerical values consistently represent better health or lower symptoms. The survey produces two separate scores: Global Physical Health (GPH) and Global Mental Health (GMH). Raw response values are summed and converted into standardized T-scores where a score of 50 represents the U.S. general population average (standard deviation of 10).	Baseline up to 1 year
Symptom Burden Time Frame: Baseline up to 1 year	Symptom burden assessed using the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory (MDASI) at all four timepoints. This survey is a multi-symptom patient-reported outcome (PRO) measure used to assess the severity of symptoms experienced by patients with cancer and the interference with daily living caused by these symptoms.	Baseline up to 1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Southern California

Collaborators

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Investigators

Principal Investigator: Kimberly Miller, PhD, University of Southern California

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

November 24, 2021

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 14, 2021

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 20, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

December 2, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 31, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 29, 2026

Last Verified

July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

0S-20-10 (Other Identifier: USC / Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center)
P30CA014089 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
NCI-2021-05723 (Registry Identifier: CTRP (Clinical Trial Reporting Program))
R37CA256867 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Social Health, Activity Behaviors, and Quality of Life Among Young Adult Cancer Survivors