Survivors Overcoming and Achieving Resiliency (SOAR): Mindful Eating Practice for Breast Cancer Survivors in a Virtual Teaching Kitchen.

The practice of mindful eating brings awareness to food choices, brings attention to the eating experience, and encourages selecting and preparing food that is both satisfying and nourishing. We examined mindful eating in breast cancer survivors following a 9-week, multidisciplinary virtual teaching kitchen intervention called Survivors Overcoming and Achieving Resiliency (SOAR). SOAR engaged participants through weekly cooking classes that also taught multiple domains of mindfulness. Participants (n = 102) were breast cancer survivors and completed the Mindful Eating Questionnaire (MEQ) prior to and after completion of the intervention. Linear regression analyses examined relationships between the aspects of mindful eating and body mass index (BMI). Wilcoxon (paired) rank sum tests evaluated the significance of the change in the MEQ total sum and subscales scores. A total of 102 participants completed both the pre- and post-intervention surveys. The mean change between the pre- and post-SOAR MEQ summary scores was 0.12 (sd = 0.30; Wilcoxon p-value = 0.0003). All MEQ subscale scores significantly increased with the exception of the distraction subscale. The MEQ summary scores increased for participants across both BMI stratifications. The SOAR teaching kitchen represents one of the first interventions that is tailored for breast cancer survivors and combines behavioral strategies from mindful eating training to nutritional knowledge and culinary medicine pedagogy in a virtual teaching kitchen. Further research is needed to examine whether mindful eating practices among cancer survivors result in sustainable healthy eating behaviors and food choices consistent with the cancer risk reduction guidelines.

Perceptions of a Breast Cancer Survivorship Intervention: Pearls of Wisdom from Young African American Women.

PURPOSE: African American (AA) women ages 20-44 develop breast cancer at higher rates compared with Caucasian women. These young survivors (<45 years) also have disparate quality of life (QOL). Little is known about survivorship information needs of young AA survivors. The purpose of this study was to explore young AA survivors' perceptions of an existing QOL intervention for breast cancer survivors, identifying information needs to address using a targeted intervention. METHODS: Two semistructured interviews were conducted with each of 15 young AA survivors who had completed breast cancer treatment. This article focuses on the second interview in which young AA survivors reviewed intervention materials and described their perceptions of the intervention. Content analysis was used to identify themes, which were validated by participants. RESULTS: Participants (n: 15; mean age at study entry: 35 years) reported that the existing evidence-based intervention discussed relevant but general survivorship information. They suggested adapting the information for young AA survivors: addition of content geared toward finances, how to better communicate to manage dating and relationships, how to engage in healthful activities, and how to find local resources for any stage of survivorship. Furthermore, they suggested multiple modes of information delivery and inclusion of diverse imagery. CONCLUSION: Engaging young AA survivors yielded pearls of wisdom, highlighting the general nature of an existing intervention and suggesting adaptations to meet young AA survivors' information needs. Applying such pearls can be a powerful method to target survivorship interventions for this disparate group of cancer survivors.