Physical Performance Testing

This clinical trial evaluates the effects of exercise therapy on signs of colorectal cancer in colon tissue and blood in people who completed pelvic radiation therapy for prostate cancer. People who get radiation in the pelvic area have a higher chance of developing colon cancer years later. This is because radiation can cause new mutations and inflammation. Research shows that exercise lowers colon cancer risk by about 30%. The results of this trial may help researchers better understand how exercise affects the development of colorectal cancer in patients who were treated with pelvic radiation therapy for prostate cancer.

Prehabilitation refers to the process of improving a patient's functional capabilities prior to a surgical procedure with the goal of decreasing post-surgical inactivity and physical decline. This clinical trial evaluates the utility of a personalized home-based prehabilitation exercise intervention for the improvement of physical function and surgical outcomes in patients with urothelial carcinoma undergoing definitive or consolidative surgery of the bladder (radical cystectomy) or upper tract (nephroureterectomy, ureterectomy) with or without preceding neoadjuvant/systemic therapy. The exercise intervention includes at-home exercise sessions focused on the improvement of core strength and balance as well as personalized step count goals, delivered to patients remotely via a smart-device-based application (ExerciseRx). Encouraging physical activity before surgery may improve physical function and surgical outcomes in patients who are scheduled to undergo surgery for their bladder or urothelial cancer.

This phase II trial tests how well pembrolizumab in addition to chemotherapy (gemcitabine, brentuximab vedotin, and dacarbazine) works in treating frail patients with newly diagnosed Hodgkin lymphoma who aren't candidates for standard anthracycline-based treatment. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of cancer cells to grow and spread. Gemcitabine is a chemotherapy drug that blocks the cells from making deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and may kill cancer cells. Brentuximab vedotin is in a class of medications called antibody-drug conjugates. It is made of a monoclonal antibody called brentuximab that is linked to a cytotoxic agent called vedotin. Brentuximab attaches to CD30 positive lymphoma cells in a targeted way and delivers vedotin to kill them. Dacarbazine is in a class of medications called alkylating agents. It works by damaging the cell's DNA and may kill cancer cells and slow down or stop cancer growth. Pembrolizumab in combination chemotherapy may be a safe and effective alternative treatment option for frail patients with Hodgkin lymphoma who can't receive standard anthracycline-based treatment.