Vida Plena: Lifestyle intervention for Hispanic female cancer survivors and caregivers

Vida Plena is a stakeholder-informed, culturally relevant lifestyle research effort focused on Mexican-origin Hispanic breast cancer survivors and their caregivers living in a United States-Mexico border community. The project, presented in a qualitative analysis, addresses the elevated cancer burden experienced by Hispanic survivors and explores how diet and physical activity may reduce that burden. Using semistructured interviews conducted via internet-based teleconferencing, the study engaged 12 Mexican-origin Hispanic survivors of breast cancer and 7 caregivers to understand posttreatment lifestyle experiences, treatment-related symptoms, perceptions of lifestyle influence on health after cancer, and preferences for intervention content and delivery.

Analysis followed a deductive thematic approach grounded in the Quality of Cancer Survivorship Care Framework. Key themes emerging from survivor interviews included a perception of the traditional Mexican diet as unhealthy, a clear need for reliable diet-related information, and recognition of physical activity benefits after cancer treatment. Survivors described family support, both physical and emotional, as important for adopting healthier lifestyles, while also identifying cancer-related symptoms that interfered with lifestyle change and financial barriers that limited access to healthful food and activity opportunities. Caregivers described how the caregiving experience influenced their own lifestyle and preventive behaviors and expressed gratification in supporting survivors. The qualitative findings reveal specific considerations for adapting and implementing a theory-informed, evidence-based lifestyle program for this population, including culturally relevant content, strategies to address informational and economic barriers, incorporation of family supports, and sensitivity to persistent treatment effects that can impede behavior change. The study highlights the importance of delivering lifestyle interventions that are accessible in border communities, where resources and reliable information may be limited, and underscores the potential for programs like Vida Plena to encourage cancer-protective behaviors that reduce both cancer-related and comorbidity risk.

Although the work is qualitative and exploratory, the results directly inform the development of targeted intervention components and delivery modalities, such as mobile phone-enabled or telehealth approaches, that respect cultural dietary practices while offering practical, evidence-based guidance on diet and physical activity. Overall, Vida Plena provides a grounded roadmap for researchers, clinicians, and community partners aiming to promote survivorship health in Mexican-origin populations along the U.S.-Mexico border by centering survivor and caregiver perspectives, addressing structural and symptom-related barriers, and leveraging family support to sustain lifestyle change.