Frequently Asked Questions

  • Is there any cost to join the study?

No. The study team will cover all study-related costs including fitness testing, exercise supervision, and parking for study-related visits.


  • Why should I join this study?

Your participation will help answer important questions that many bladder cancer patients have about exercising during intravesical therapy. Based on the results of this study, it is hoped that in the long-term, patient care can be improved.



  • What are the benefits of participating in this study?

As this is the first study of exercise in bladder cancer patients during and after intravesical therapy, we don’t know if the exercise will have any benefits or harms. That is the question we would like to answer with the BRAVE study.


  • What are the risks in taking part of this study?

You may experience side effects from participating in this study. It is possible that some people will experience muscle soreness and fatigue following the fitness testing and high-intensity aerobic interval training sessions. This type of response is normal, will go away after a few days, and generally poses no threat to health.

During and immediately after the aerobic fitness test, it is possible to experience symptoms such as abnormal blood pressure, fainting, light-headedness, muscle cramps or strain, nausea, and in very rare cases (1 per 20,000 in testing facilities), heart rhythm disturbances or heart attack. Despite rare, such risks must be acknowledged.


  • Is it safe to do this study with the COVID pandemic still ongoing?

Yes, our study and facilities are approved to conduct this research during the COVID pandemic following all COVID-related precautions. A protocol of precautions for COVID-19 has been implemented for fitness testing and the exercise intervention including protective equipment during testing, masks for all exercise supervisors, social distancing within our exercise facility, and a limited number of study participants in our facility at one time. Prior to the first assessment, participants will be screened for flu-symptoms by a phone call and asked not to come to the facility if any of the following factors are present:

1) presence of any flu-symptom (e.g. fever, cough, sore throat, and shortness of breath);

2) in the last 14 days, the patient has travelled anywhere outside of Canada;

3) in the last 14 days, the patient had close contact with a confirmed or probable case of COVID-19;

4) in the last 14 days, the participant had contact with a person with acute respiratory illness who has travelled anywhere outside of Canada within the 14 days before their illness;

Moreover, equipment and facility are disinfected regularly before and after each testing/exercise intervention.