Health Education Materials With/Out a Physical Activity Program for Patients Who Have Undergone Treatment for High-Risk Stage II or Stage III Colon Cancer

RATIONALE: Participating in a physical activity program designed to increase free time physical activity and receiving written health education materials may influence the chance of cancer recurring as well as impact on physical fitness, psychological well-being and the quality of life of patients who have undergone surgery and chemotherapy for colon cancer. It is not yet known whether giving a physical activity program together with health education materials is more effective than giving health education materials alone for patients who have undergone colon cancer treatment. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying a physical activity program given together with health education materials to see how well it works compared with giving health education materials alone for patients who have undergone treatment for high-risk stage II or stage III colon cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Primary * To compare the disease-free survival (DFS) of medically fit patients who have completed surgical resection and adjuvant chemotherapy for high-risk stage II or stage III colon cancer when administered a physical activity program with general health education materials vs general health education materials alone. Secondary * To compare the two intervention arms with respect to overall survival (OS); patient-reported outcomes using the SF-36, FACIT-F, PSQI, and HADS questionnaires; objective markers of physical fitness using body mass index, hip and waist circumference, submaximal exercise testing, and the Seniors' Fitness Test; physical activity behavior using the Total Physical Activity Questionnaire (TPAQ); safety profile as assessed by NCI CTCAE version 3.0; serum levels of insulin (i.e., IGF-1, IGF-2, and IGFBP3); cytokine levels (i.e., IL-1β, IL-6, IL-2, IL-4, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and GM-CSF) and C-reactive protein levels; economic evaluations including cost-effective and cost-utility analyses; and predictors of physical activity adherence using the Social-Cognitive Determinants of Exercise Measure questionnaire. * To evaluate the potential prognostic associations of the serum levels of insulin, IGF-1, IGF-2, IGFBP3, blood glucose, cytokines (i.e., IL- 1β, IL-6, IL-2, IL-4, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and GM-CSF), and C-reactive protein with DFS, OS, level of physical activity, and level of fatigue in these patients. * To evaluate the potential prognostic associations of age, gender, country, incremental increase in physical activity, and change in cardiovascular fitness with DFS, OS, level of fatigue, and quality of life in these patients. OUTLINE: This is a multicenter study. Patients are stratified according to disease stage (II vs III), participating center, body mass index (≤ 27.5 vs \> 27.5), and ECOG performance status (0 vs 1). Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 treatment interventions. * Arm I: Patients receive general health education materials regarding nutrition and physical activity and undergo the Colon Health And Life Long Exercise Change (CHALLENGE) physical activity program consisting of behavior-support sessions and supervised physical activity sessions with a physical activity consultant. * Part I (intensive intervention for 6 months): Patients undergo 12 mandatory biweekly face-to-face behavior support sessions combined with 12 mandatory supervised physical activity sessions to increase their physical activity goal by 10 metabolic equivalent task (MET) hours/week. Twelve supervised physical activity sessions are also recommended on alternate weeks. * Part II (reduced intervention for months 6-12): Patients undergo 12 mandatory biweekly face-to-face or telephone behavior support sessions combined with 12 recommended supervised physical activity sessions to increase their physical activity goal by 20 MET hours/week. * Part III (minimal intervention for months 12-36): Patients undergo mandatory monthly face-to-face or telephone behavior support sessions combined with recommended supervised physical activity sessions to increase their physical activity goal to a maximum total of 27 MET hours/week. * Arm II: Patients receive general health education materials regarding nutrition and physical activity. Patients complete the Total Physical Activity Questionnaire (TPAQ) to assess exercise participation and undergo fitness testing periodically by the submaximal exercise test and Seniors' Fitness Test (SFT). Patients complete the SF-36, FACT-F, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and Social Cognitive Determinants of Exercise Measure questionnaires periodically. Patients also complete a 30-day resource use diary and undergo a health economics analysis by the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire. Blood samples are collected periodically for correlative studies and fasting glucose. Samples are analyzed for markers of insulin level, IGF-1, IGF-2, and IGFBP3, cytokine levels (i.e., IL-1β, IL-6, IL-2, IL-4, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and GM-CSF), and C-reactive protein levels. During the 3 year intervention period, patients are followed every 6 months for 3 years and then annually for 4-10 years.