Take a Hike

RESULTS

3

Average attendance was 74%, among the 9
participants who completed the program.
No significant reduction was seen in the primary
outcome of generalized anxiety, however there was
a decline over the 8 week program.
A significant reduction was seen in Percieved Stress
from pre-post program
A reduction in State Anxiety was seen throughout
the 8 weeks as well as pre-post program

The Effectiveness of
Group Based Trail Walking
on Anxiety in Cancer
Survivors
Joleen Prystupa &
Dr. Iris Lesser
INTRODUCTION

1

There has been a steady rise in cancer survivorship
due to the advancement of medical technology and
preventative screening (5).
A multitude of physical and psychological side effects
continue to impact cancer survivors well beyond
diagnosis.
A synergistic relationship has been seen between the
benefits of physical activity and exposure to nature
and has been coined Green Exercise (3,4).
The benefits of Green Exercise in reducing anxiety in
cancer survivors could help provide insight to
specific health care programming that could address
the unique challenges faced by cancer survivors (6).
This study aims to evaluate the impact of an 8-week
trail walking program on anxiety in a population of
adult cancer survivors.
It is hypothesized there would be a reduction in
generalized anxiety as well as improvements in other
psychosocial and physical activity outcomes.

METHODS

An 8 week group based trail
walking program may be
effective in reducing
perceived stress and state
anxiety in cancer survivors

2

Population
This study was a within group design consisting of
adult cancer survivors cleared by their physicians to
engage in physical activity.
Ethics approval was granted by the University of the
Fraser Valley Human Ethics Board
Study Instruments
The primary outcome(Generalized Anxiety) and
secondary outcomes (Perceived Stress, Sleep,
Exercise Self-efficacy, Self-esteem, Well-being, and
Depression) were measured with pre-post study
surveys.
State Anxiety was measured with a pre-post visual
analog scale at each trail walking session.
Study Design
The study consisted of two forest trail walks per
week for eight weeks, meeting the recommended
physical activity guidelines of >150 minutes/week
Statistical Analysis
A paired t-test was used to compare pre-post survey
data as well as compare scores for the visual analog
scale
Statistical significance was set at p<0.05.

CONCLUSION

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Negative mood symptoms such as stress and anxiety
often co-occur (6).
A reduction of Perceived Stress and State Anxiety
aligns with past research that showed exercising
outdoors elicited lower anxiety compared to
exercising indoors (1).
Additionally, larger reductions in state anxiety have
been observed in physical activities that have taken
place in greener environments (3).
It is essential to find better behavioral and
psychological interventions to reduce the risk of
anxiety disorders among cancer survivors (2)

RECOMMENDATIONS

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The present study may have been too short of a
timeframe to elicit a significant response in
generalized anxiety.
The current quantitative analysis was unable to
measure the observed psychosocial changes that
took place with each participant.
Future studies should run for >8 weeks, and involve
qualitative analysis such as post program interviews

Take a picture to download more
information
Joleen.prystupa@student.ufv.ca

REFERENCES

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1 Lawton, E., Brymer, E., Clough, P., Denovan, A. (2017)The Relationship between the Physical Activity Environment, Nature Relatedness, Anxiety, and the Psychological Wellbeing Benefits of Regular Exercisers
2 Liu, J., Peh, C.-X., Simard, S., Griva, K., & Mahendran, R. (2018). Beyond the fear that lingers: The interaction between fear of cancer recurrence and rumination in relation
to depression and anxiety symptoms. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 111, 120–126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2018.06.004
3 Mackay, G. J., & Neill, J. T. (2010). The effect of “green exercise” on state anxiety and the role of exercise duration, intensity, and greenness: A quasi-experimental study.
Psychology of Sport & Exercise, 11, 238–245. https://doi-org.proxy.ufv.ca:2443/10.1016/j.psychsport.2010.01.002
4 Mitchell, R. (2013). Is physical activity in natural environments better for mental health than physical activity in other environments? Social Science & Medicine, 91, 130–134.
https://doi-org.proxy.ufv.ca:2443/10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.04.012
5 Ray, H., & Jakubec, S. L. (2014). Nature-based experiences and health of cancer survivors.Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 20, 188–192. https://doiorg.proxy.ufv.ca:2443/10.1016/j.ctcp.2014.07.005
6 Yi, J. C., & Syrjala, K. L. (2017). Anxiety and Depression in Cancer Survivors. The Medical clinics of North America, 101(6), 1099-1113. doi: 10.1016/j.mcna.2017.06.005