RATIONALE: Physical activity may prevent or lessen depression and anxiety and improve quality of life and immune function in patients with colorectal cancer.

PURPOSE: This randomized clinical trial is studying how well physical activity helps patients with stage II or stage III colorectal cancer recover from cancer.

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

• Assess the effect of moderate physical activity interventions in ameliorating quality of life (as measured by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Colon questionnaire) in patients undergoing or who have previously received chemotherapy for stage II or III colorectal cancer.

Secondary

• Assess the effect of different moderate physical activity interventions in ameliorating depression (as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory) and anxiety (as measured by the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) in these patients.
• Assess the effect of these interventions on attitudes related to physical activity (as measured by the American Council on Exercise History questionnaire) in these patients.
• Characterize serum levels and patterns of immune function (cytokines, neutrophils, T cells, B cells, natural killer [NK] cells, and immunoglobulin) in these patients.
• Correlate serum levels and patterns of immune function (cytokines, neutrophils, T cells, B cells, NK cells, and immunoglobulin) with the patients' physical activity levels.

OUTLINE: This is a randomized study. Patients are randomized to 1 of 3 treatment arms.

• Arm I: Patients participate in individual walking sessions once a week for 8 weeks. The sessions include a fitness-related discussion, warm-up and stretch, 45 minutes of physical activity consisting of walking (progressing in intensity), and a cool-down period.
• Arm II: Patients participate in a group walking sessions once a week for 8 weeks. The sessions include a fitness-related discussion, warm-up and stretch, 45 minutes of physical activity consisting of walking (progressing in intensity as in arm I), and a cool-down period.
• Arm III: Patients participate in self-directed physical activity sessions (1½ hours) once a week for 8 weeks. The sessions include warm-up and stretch followed by 45 minutes of progressively intensified physical activity that integrates fundamentals of movement, dance, and exercise principles from established movement methods (i.e., yoga) and a relaxation session/cool-down period.

All patients complete self-reported questionnaires (Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Colon, and American Council on Exercise History questionnaires). Patients also undergo blood collection at baseline, at 4 weeks, upon completion of study treatment, and at 4 months after completion of study treatment for correlative studies. Blood is examined by flow cytometry for immune function and cytokines.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 45 patients will be accrued for this study.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Diagnosis of stage II-III colorectal cancer meeting 1 of the following criteria:

  • Undergoing concurrent chemotherapy
  • Completed chemotherapy within the past 2 years

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• No physical or emotional impairment that would limit study compliance
• No prior or current chronic substance abuse

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics