Adherence to dietary guidelines and associated factors among rural Australian cancer survivors: a cross-sectional study.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to explore levels of adherence to dietary guidelines, and factors associated with dietary guideline adherence, among rural Australian cancer survivors. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was undertaken. We recruited a convenience sample of adults with cancer who attended the chemotherapy day unit or allied health appointments at a rural hospital in Baw Baw Shire, Victoria, Australia, between August 2017 and December 2021. Dietary guideline adherence was assessed by cross-referencing participants' responses to an adapted version of the Dietary Questionnaire for Epidemiological Studies with dietary recommendations in Australian dietary guidelines. Binary logistic regression was used to assess factors associated with dietary guideline adherence for fruits and whole red meats. RESULTS: There were 107 rural cancer survivors (median age, 67 years). Dietary guideline adherence was highest for alcohol (88%) followed by whole red meats (63%), fruits (56%), processed red meats (24%), cereals/breads/grains (7%), and vegetables (4%). Relative to those aged < 65 years, 65-74-year-olds had 5.7-fold greater odds (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 5.74, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.91-17.17) of adhering to the dietary guideline for fruits. Relative to those who had completed/ceased treatment, participants who were currently receiving treatment had 78% lower odds (aOR = 0.22, 95% CI = 0.09-0.59) of adhering to the dietary guideline for fruits. CONCLUSION: This study contributes preliminary data on adherence to dietary guidelines and associated factors among rural Australian cancer survivors. Dietary guideline adherence varied across food groups and was mostly low, albeit not markedly worse than Australia's national population for the fruits and vegetables groups. The mostly low adherence in our sample suggests a potential need to increase provision of dietary information, supportive care screening, and, wherever necessary, dietetics referrals, assessments, and interventions among rural cancer survivors. Larger, longitudinal studies of adherence to dietary guidelines and/or tailored, cancer-specific dietary recommendations should be undertaken in future.

Physical activity, obesity, and quality of life among rural Australian cancer survivors: a cross-sectional study.

PURPOSE: We aimed to describe physical activity (PA), obesity, and quality of life (QoL) among rural Australian cancer survivors, assess whether total and item-specific QoL are associated with sufficient PA and obesity, and assess whether PA and obesity interact with respect to QoL. METHODS: In a cross-sectional study, convenience sampling was used to recruit adult cancer survivors via a chemotherapy day unit and allied health professionals at a rural hospital in Baw Baw Shire, Australia. Exclusion criteria were acute malnutrition and end-of-life care. PA and QoL were measured using Godin-Shephard and 7-item Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT-G7) questionnaires, respectively. Factors associated with total and item-specific QoL were assessed via linear and logistic regression, respectively. RESULTS: Among 103 rural cancer survivors, the median age was 66 years, 35% were sufficiently physically active, and 41% presented with obesity. Mean/median total QoL scores were 17 on the FACT-G7 scale (0-28; higher scores indicate better QoL). Sufficient PA was associated with better QoL ([Formula: see text]=2.29; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.26, 4.33) and more energy (odds ratio [OR] = 4.00, 95% CI = 1.48, 10.78) while obesity was associated with worse QoL ([Formula: see text]=-2.09; 95% CI = -4.17, -0.01) and more pain (OR = 3.88, 95% CI = 1.29, 11.68). The PA-obesity interaction was non-significant (p-value = 0.83). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first known study conducted among rural survivors of any cancer to find sufficient PA and obesity are associated with better and worse QoL, respectively. PA, weight management, and QoL-including energy and pain-should be considered when targeting and tailoring supportive care interventions for rural cancer survivors.

The Cat Desexing Policies and Activities of Private Veterinary Practices in Queensland.

Cats are prolific breeders, and if most cats were desexed prior to puberty, numbers of unwanted cats and kittens, and hence numbers entering shelters, would be expected to decline. Although traditionally in Australia it has been reported that 90% of veterinary clients' cats are desexed, there are still hundreds of cats and kittens that end up unwanted and in shelter care annually. In this study, we surveyed Queensland veterinary practices to describe ages that veterinarians are recommending cats should be desexed at, ages at which desexing actually occurs, what veterinary practices are doing to promote desexing of cats, and what veterinarians see as the barriers to desexing of cats before puberty. A questionnaire was developed and sent to all veterinary practices in Queensland. The response rate was 50%. Almost 45% of respondents recommended desexing at the traditional age of 6 months, which is later than puberty in most cats; for more than 56% of practices, the actual average age at which desexing occurred was at least 6 months; and in a substantial proportion of practices, when desexed, high percentages of cats had already had litters. Most practices took steps to encourage their clients to have their cats desexed, and most thought these steps were effective. The results from this study suggest that although veterinarians generally agree that cats should be desexed prior to having their first litter, recommended and actual desexing ages are commonly too late to ensure this is achieved. Better understanding is required about both the likely impact of more veterinary practices recommending and conducting desexing before puberty on numbers of unwanted cats and numbers surrendered to shelters, and the drivers of age at which cats are desexed. This could inform strategies to reduce numbers of unwanted cats.