Adverse Event Assessment and Reporting in Exercise Oncology: A Review

Abstract

ABSTRACT Exercise oncology trials report few adverse events, but the extent to which these adverse events are assessed and reported has yet to be quantified. The aim of this review was to evaluate adverse events assessment and reporting in exercise oncology trials that informed the American College of Sports Medicine’s 2019 Exercise Guidelines for Cancer Survivors, the leading guidelines document in exercise oncology. All trials that inform the Exercise Guidelines for Cancer Survivors were sourced for evaluation. In total, 231 clinical trials were identified. Approximately one-in-two trials included no detail of adverse event assessment methods and did not report intervention-related harms. Trials that described an adverse event assessment protocol reported higher numbers of adverse events compared with trials that did not. Many trials reported that adverse events were related to exercise; however, the majority of the trials did not define how this relationship was determined. Although the benefit of exercise postcancer is well established, findings from this review highlight the inadequacies of adverse events reporting within the exercise oncology field. The development and evaluation of a standardized adverse events assessment and reporting protocol for use in exercise oncology trials is needed.