A self-directed home yoga programme for women with breast cancer during chemotherapy: A feasibility study.

Recent studies suggest yoga as a promising approach for improving the cognitive function of cancer survivors. We studied whether a self-directed home yoga programme was feasible for patients with breast cancer who were undergoing chemotherapy. Participants' preferences for the type of yoga course and the clinical effects of the programme were also assessed. In this study, 18 women (mean age, 43.9 years) were enrolled (44.7% recruitment rate). Of the participants, 63.6% had stage II cancer and 71.4% received adjuvant chemotherapy. Favourable retention (86%), adherence (94.4%) and acceptability (96.5%) rates were determined. Most (94.4%) of the women practiced the home programme more than twice a week on average. The participants preferred to gradually increase the intensity of the exercises. We only observed improvements in the cognitive aspects of fatigue. No serious adverse events were encountered during the programme. This self-directed home yoga programme was safe and feasible for patients with breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy.