Anna Campbell
Anna Campbell

Prof Anna Campbell

Professor

 0131 455 6462

  A.Campbell4@napier.ac.uk

   

Biography

I trained as an immunologist/ biochemist and worked in the biotechnology industry until 1998. Since graduating in 2000 with a MSc in Sport and Exercise Science, I have concentrated on researching the physical and psychological effects of exercise and physical activity after a cancer diagnosis. I have published over 60 research papers and three academic book chapters in the field of exercise and cancer survivorship.

My research has been based around the development and testing of pragmatic interventions for cancer survivors and examining the effects of physical activity / exercise on cardiorespiratory fitness, active daily living, psychological well being and quality of life. These studies have involved working with breast, gynaecological, colorectal and lung cancer patients.

I consider myself as a "Pracademic" ie my academic work is closely connected to the practitioners' world : health professionals working in the field of oncology and fitness professionals working in community setting with clients with chronic conditions. I designed two exercise DVDs for cancer survivors funded by Macmillan and Breast Cancer Care; I set up the first free community based exercise programme for cancer survivors in the UK - the basis of Macmillan Cancer Care's MoveMore Programme; and I am Director of CanRehab (www.canrehab.co.uk) which was established to train fitness professionals to provide safe effective exercise programmes for anyone post cancer diagnosis . I also have established the charity CanRehabTrust which links cancer patients to cancer exercise specialists. I am part of the WHO cancer rehabilitation 2030 group.

In addition to my research interests and establishing best practice, I am also involved in the development and teaching of Clinical Exercise Science M.Sc at Edinburgh Napier. This Masters degree builds on the Sport Exercise and Health’s research and expertise in the therapeutic role of exercise in a number of clinical settings (cancer, cardiovascular, stroke, multiple sclerosis etc.). This Masters is unique in providing a strong applied component to this degree. The MSc students work directly with cancer survivors to learn how to perform clinical exercise tests, exercise consultations/ behaviour change interventions and how to design individualised safe and effective exercise programmes for real clients. The module “Cancer Survivorship and Exercise” incorporates the CanRehab Level 4 national occupational standard vocational qualification into this Module.

I am also on the advisory board for the NHS Prehabilitation Programme for cancer patients and Chair of the international Cancer Special Interest Group at ACSM.

School

Research Groups

Themes

Research Areas

Esteem

Advisory panels and expert committees or witness

  • International Roundtable for development of guidelines on cancer and exercise
  • Guidelines and implementation of Prehabilitation for cancer patients in NHS
  • Clinical exercise physiology workforce development in Europe advisory team
  • Chair ACSM international Cancer Special Interest Group
  • International 'Moving Through Cancer' Initiative
  • International Advisory Panel on guidelines on exercise and bone metastases
  • Prepare-ABC Trial Steering Committee
  • National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Lifestyle and Behaviour Change Subgroup
  • Macmillan's Cancer and Physical Activity Standard Evaluation Framework Group
  • Trial steering committee – B-AHEAD clinical trial
  • Breast Cancer Campaign Research Gap Advisory Group
  • Macmillan Physical Activity and Cancer Advisory Group

 

External Examining/Validations

  • External reviewer of University of Chichester Masters programmes. MSc/ MSci degree programmes in the area of sport and exercise science

 

Fellowships and Awards

  • MBE for services to cancer survivorship and exercise rehabilitation
  • Senate Award for Excellence in Teaching (University of Dundee)

 

Grant Reviewer

  • Irish Cancer Society Grant Applications
  • World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF)
  • External reviewer for Irish Cancer Society’s PhD studentships
  • Chief Scientist Office (Health Services Research)
  • Prostate Cancer UK
  • National Institute of Health Research (NIHR)
  • Cancer Research UK
  • Macmillan Cancer Support
  • Dutch Cancer Society Research Grants
  • Prostate Cancer UK

 

Invited Speaker

  • 'Implementation of exercise programmes for breast cancer patients' breast cancer interdisciplinary meeting (February 2020)
  • LUCID conference for doctors insurance (Oct 2019)
  • 'Mechanisms of protection from cancer recurrence by Exercise' Scottish Cancer Prevention Network (February 2019)
  • 'Movement Matters' OncoMove Conference Porto Portugal (Sept 2019)
  • Danish Annual Physiotherapist Conference - 'evidence review of exercise and cancer'
  • Royal College of Physicians Edinburgh Annual Symposium (March 2017)
  • Royal Mardsen Cancer Exercise Conference (November each year)
  • Cancer Symposium: ISBNPA, Cape Town, South Africa (June 2016)
  • 'Exercise and Prostate Cancer'European Urology Nursing Oncology (EUAN) conference, Madrid (May 2015)
  • 'Benefits of staying active after a cancer diagnosis'Royal College of Medicine GP Masterclass in cancer survivorship (December 2015)
  • 'Evidence Review on Exercise and Cancer' British Association of Exercise and Science (BASES) annual conference St George’s Park, Staffordshire (December 2015)
  • International Physical Activity and Health Conference Sydney, Australia, (November 2012)
  • “Bone Health and Cancer Clinical Implications and Palliative Care” - Surrey University (March 2012)
  • e-ESO webinar “The role of exercise in cancer rehabilitation” (www.e-ESO.net) (Jan 2013)
  • European Cancer Congress (ECCO) “Cancer, now what? Returning to normal life”, Amsterdam (September 2013)
  • Royal Marsden talk at conference “Exercise – the fourth cancer treatment (January 2015)
  • Scottish Breast Cancer Clinical Trial Research Group Annual Meeting – Edinburgh (January 2016)
  • Scottish Breast Cancer Clinical Trial Group Annual Meeting - Dundee (November 2011)
  • Conference - Cancer and Consequences of Treatment, Warwick University (October 2010)
  • Keynote “Innovations in Oncology – Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton (June 2013)
  • Denmark and Sweden Visit: 3 days of presentations and workshops in Copenhagen, Odense and Oslo to health professionals working in cancer rehabilitation with research colleague from National Institute of Health (NIH), USA.(March 2015)
  • Keynote British Psychological Society “Sport & Exercise Psychology in Action” University of Chichester (October 2012)
  • British Dietetic Association “Living with and Beyond Cancer – Thinking Outside the Box” Brighton (September 2012).
  • International Sydney Breast Cancer Conference, Sydney Australia (October, 2012)
  • “Stacking the Odds against Cancer Occurrence and Recurrence” Scottish Cancer Prevention Network, Edinburgh (November 2011)
  • BASES Conference “Challenging the Dogma” - Glasgow (September 2010)

 

Public/Community Engagement

  • Exercise after a Sarcoma Diagnosis - patient group
  • 'Exercise after a kidney cancer diagnosis' Patient Forum

 

Research Degree External Examining

  • PhD Kira Bloomquist University of Copenhagen
  • External examiner for PhD student Lauri McDermott, University of Ulster
  • External examiner for PhD Kevin Kipling at University of Huddersfield
  • External examiner for PhD: Eric Martin at New South Wales University, Sydney Australia

 

Reviewing

  • Lung
  • Lancet Oncology
  • European Journal of Oncology Nursing,
  • Referee for two Cochrane Reviews
  • Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise
  • Health Education Research
  • Physical Therapy,
  • British Medical Journal (BMJ),
  • J Sport and Exercise Psychology
  • Cancer Causes and Control,
  • J Cancer Survivorship,
  • Journal Clinical Oncology,
  • European Journal of Cancer Care,

 

Visiting Positions

  • Visiting teacher to University of Copenhagen

 

Filter by

Date


51 results

Effects of supervised exercise on motivational outcomes in breast cancer survivors at 5-year follow-up

Journal Article
Trinh, L., Mutrie, N., Campbell, A. M., Crawford, J. J., & Courneya, K. S. (2014)
Effects of supervised exercise on motivational outcomes in breast cancer survivors at 5-year follow-up. European Journal of Oncology Nursing, 18(6), 557-563. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejon.2014.07.004
Short-term physical activity (PA) has beneficial effects on symptom management and quality of life, however, longer-term adherence is likely needed for improved disease outcom...

CRIB—the use of cardiac rehabilitation services to aid the recovery of patients with bowel cancer: a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) with embedded feasibility study

Journal Article
Munro, J., Adams, R., Campbell, A., Campbell, S., Donaldson, C., Godwin, J., …Hubbard, G. (2014)
CRIB—the use of cardiac rehabilitation services to aid the recovery of patients with bowel cancer: a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) with embedded feasibility study. BMJ Open, 4(2), https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2013-004684
Introduction: Patients with colorectal cancer report ongoing physical and psychological impairments and a high proportion of these patients are overweight, insufficiently acti...

Exercise intervention for patients surgically treated for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC): A systematic review

Journal Article
Crandall, K., Maguire, R., Campbell, A., & Kearney, N. (2014)
Exercise intervention for patients surgically treated for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC): A systematic review. Surgical Oncology, 23(1), 17-30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.suronc.2014.01.001
AbstractBackground Surgery remains the best curative option for appropriately selected patients with lung cancer. Evidence suggests that improving cardiovascular fitness and f...

Understanding barriers to exercise implementation 5-year post-breast cancer diagnosis: a large-scale qualitative study

Journal Article
Hefferon, K., Murphy, H., McLeod, J., Mutrie, N., & Campbell, A. (2013)
Understanding barriers to exercise implementation 5-year post-breast cancer diagnosis: a large-scale qualitative study. Health Education Research, 28(5), 843-856. https://doi.org/10.1093/her/cyt083
Due to the amount of literature supporting exercise participation after cancer diagnosis, there has been recent interest in barriers to exercise engagement among cancer patien...

A focus group study exploring gynecological cancer survivors’ experiences and perceptions of participating in a RCT testing the efficacy of a home-based physical activity intervention

Journal Article
Donnelly, C. M., Lowe-Strong, A., Rankin, J. P., Campbell, A., Blaney, J. M., & Gracey, J. H. (2013)
A focus group study exploring gynecological cancer survivors’ experiences and perceptions of participating in a RCT testing the efficacy of a home-based physical activity intervention. Supportive Care in Cancer, 21(6), 1697-1708. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-012-1716-0
This study aims to explore gynecological cancer survivors' perceptions and experiences following participation in a randomised controlled trial (RCT) testing the efficacy of a...

Five-year follow-up of participants in a randomised controlled trial showing benefits from exercise for breast cancer survivors during adjuvant treatment. Are there lasting effects?

Journal Article
Mutrie, N., Campbell, A., Barry, S., Hefferon, K., McConnachie, A., Ritchie, D., …Mutrie, N. (2012)
Five-year follow-up of participants in a randomised controlled trial showing benefits from exercise for breast cancer survivors during adjuvant treatment. Are there lasting effects?. Journal of Cancer Survivorship, 6(4), 420-430. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11764-012-0233-y
In an earlier randomised controlled trial, we showed that early stage breast cancer patients who received a supervised exercise programme, with discussion of behaviour change ...

The BASES Expert Statement on Exercise and Cancer Survivorship

Journal Article
Crank, H., Campbell, A., Stevinson, C., & Crank, H. C. (2012)
The BASES Expert Statement on Exercise and Cancer Survivorship. Journal of Sports Sciences, 30(9), 949-952. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2012.671953
This statement provides a concise overview of the evidence on the benefits of staying active after a cancer diagnosis and the current guidelines for exercise prescription with...

P4-12-01: The Breast-Activity and Healthy Eating after Diagnosis (B-AHEAD) Study – A Randomised Comparison of Weight Control Programmes during Adjuvant Treatment.

Journal Article
Campbell, A., Harvie, M., Pegington, M., Bundred, N., Campbell, A., Wolstenholme, J., …Howell, A. (2011)
P4-12-01: The Breast-Activity and Healthy Eating after Diagnosis (B-AHEAD) Study – A Randomised Comparison of Weight Control Programmes during Adjuvant Treatment. Cancer Research, 71(24 Supplement), P4-12-01-P4-12-01. https://doi.org/10.1158/0008-5472.sabcs11-p4-12-01
Abstracts: Thirty-Fourth Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium-- Dec 6-10, 2011; San Antonio, TXBackground: Excess weight at diagnosis and weight gain during tr...

Cancer survivors' exercise barriers, facilitators and preferences in the context of fatigue, quality of life and physical activity participation: a questionnaire-survey: Cancer survivors' exercise barriers

Journal Article
Blaney, J. M., Lowe-Strong, A., Rankin-Watt, J., Campbell, A., & Gracey, J. H. (2013)
Cancer survivors' exercise barriers, facilitators and preferences in the context of fatigue, quality of life and physical activity participation: a questionnaire-survey: Cancer survivors' exercise barriers. Psycho-Oncology, 22(1), 186-194. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.2072
ObjectiveTo investigate the exercise barriers, facilitators and preferences of a mixed sample of cancer survivors as well as fatigue levels, quality of life (QoL) and the freq...

A randomised controlled trial testing the feasibility and efficacy of a physical activity behavioural change intervention in managing fatigue with gynaecological cancer survivors

Journal Article
Donnelly, C., Blaney, J., Lowe-Strong, A., Rankin, J., Campbell, A., McCrum-Gardner, E., & Gracey, J. (2011)
A randomised controlled trial testing the feasibility and efficacy of a physical activity behavioural change intervention in managing fatigue with gynaecological cancer survivors. Gynecologic Oncology, 122(3), 618-624. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ygyno.2011.05.029
Objective To determine the feasibility and efficacy of a physical activity behavioural change intervention in managing cancer-related fatigue among gynaecological cancer survi...

Pre-Napier Funded Projects

  • EFFECT: Breast Cancer Campaign £60,000 - Co -investigator
  • TREATWELL: CSO £138,721 Co Investigator
  • Feasibility of Chi-gung intervention for cancer survivors: Macmillan Cancer Care:£18,200 P.I>
  • CRIB: NIHR; : £279,956 Co-investigator
  • Consultancy Income for one day/week Macmillan Cancer Care £60,000
  • 5 year follow up on breast cancer survivors in RCT exercise intervention: Macmillan Cancer Care £35,000 PI
  • B-AHEAD: NIHR £250,000 Co-investigator
  • Cancer as a catalyst for change: CSO; £246,404 Co-investigator

Current Post Grad projects

Non-Napier PhD or MSc by Research supervisions

  • PhD:Effects of Exercise on Lung Cancer Survivors - University of Surrey
  • Ph D: Physiotherapy management of cancer related fatigue in the gynaecological cancer population: University of Ulster
  • PhD: Exercise in the management of cancer related fatigue: feasibility, barriers and facilitators University of Ulster