Exercise Prior to Oesophagectomy (ExPO)

The number of patients with oesophageal cancer is rising dramatically in the UK. Curative cancer surgery (oesophagectomy) is offered to around 40% of affected patients. However, oesophagectomy is a major operation with a high risk of complications. Around 1 in 3 patients will suffer such a complication after surgery, mostly due to heart or lung problems. Most complications are not due to the surgery itself, but related to the patient's physical fitness before their operation. Studies in other surgeries, but not oesophagectomy, have shown that complications may be reduced by improving a patient's physical fitness before their operation. The ExPO team has developed a pre-operative Personalised Exercise Programme (my-PEP), specifically for patients undergoing oesophagectomy. my-PEP has 4 main components: three are exercise modalities (aerobic exercise, breathing exercises and muscle strengthening); the fourth is where a participant's potential barriers to exercise are assessed and behavioural change techniques (BCTs) are suggested to improve exercise engagement in the trial. In total, 32 patients who are due to undergo oesophagectomy at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital will be recruited and then randomly divided into 2 arms of 16 each. One arm will receive my-PEP in the standard 3-4 months prior to surgery, the other will receive standard care advice to exercise at home. The research objectives are to obtain feasibility data on whether my-PEP is acceptable, adhered to and safe, and whether it improves patient fitness above standard care. Follow up will be 90 days after surgery to obtain a preliminary imprecise estimate of whether my-PEP reduces complications. If the ExPO trial shows promise in these areas, this will inform and justify a future large multi-centre trial to definitively answer whether my-PEP can reduce complications after oesophagectomy. If so, my-PEP could potentially change and improve the pre-operative management of oesophageal cancer patients across the NHS.