The feasibility of pelvic floor training to treat urinary incontinence in women with breast cancer: a telehealth intervention trial

PURPOSE: To investigate the feasibility of recruiting into a pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) program delivered via telehealth to treat urinary incontinence (UI) in women with breast cancer on aromatase inhibitors. METHODS: We conducted a pre-post single cohort clinical trial with 54 women with breast cancer. Participants underwent a 12-week PFMT program using an intra-vaginal pressure biofeedback device: femfit(®). The intervention included eight supervised individual PFMT sessions over Zoom(™) and a 12-week home exercise program. The primary outcome of this study was feasibility, specifically consent rate. Secondary outcomes which included prevalence and burden of UI measured using the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire–Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICIQ-UI SF), and pelvic floor muscle (PFM) strength measured as intravaginal squeeze pressure were compared using McNemar’s and paired t tests. RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 50 years (SD ± 7.3). All women who were eligible to participate in this study consented (n = 55/55, 100%). All participants reported that the program was beneficial and tailored to their needs. The results showed a statistically significant decline in the prevalence (percentage difference 42%, 95% CI 28, 57%) and burden (ICIQ-UI SF score mean change 9.4, 95% CI 8.5, 10.4) of UI post intervention. A significant increase in PFM strength was observed post-intervention (mean change 4.8 mmHg, 95% CI 3.9, 5.5). CONCLUSION: This study indicated that PFMT delivered via telehealth may be feasible and potentially beneficial in treating stress UI in women with breast cancer. Further studies such as randomized controlled trials are required to confirm these results.