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In addition to the triennial follow-up surveys we send, we also invite CPS-3 participants to volunteer for substudies, which allow smaller cohorts to collect more detailed information for more targeted research about specific risk factors for cancer, such as diet and physical activity.

Participants Donate a Second Blood Specimen to Enhance Cancer Research

When CPS-3 participants first enrolled, they donated a sample of blood for researchers to evaluate biological and other risk factors that can lead to cancer and other diseases. Many of these blood samples have already been analyzed to explore a variety of topics, including the genetics of breast cancer and diet-associated biomarkers.

Between 2024 and 2026, over 14,000 CPS-3 participants provided a second blood sample. Researchers can use these more recent samples to study how exposures, risk factors, and behaviors affect biological markers in blood. Changes in biological markers over time may help us understand how to better prevent, detect, and treat cancer.

Accelerometry Substudy Tracks Participants’ Daily Activity

CPS-3 participants regularly answer survey questions about physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep. Studies have shown that being physically active decreases the risk of developing various cancers, but much more remains to be learned. One area of focus is whether individuals who are primarily active on weekends, but not on weekdays, receive the same cancer risk-reducing benefits as people who are physically active consistently throughout the week.

Between 2019 and 2023, over 21,000 CPS-3 participants agreed to wear an activity monitor (called an accelerometer) around their waists for 7 days while they were awake. Researchers will use data from the activity monitors to measure how time spent being physically active and time spent sitting affect overall health and the risk of developing cancer and other diseases.

Participants Invited to Use COVID-19 Symptom Tracker

Following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, around 8,000 CPS-3 participants started using a . This app collected information on COVID-19 symptoms, test results, vaccine doses received, and vaccine hesitancy. The app was created by doctors and scientists at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Massachusetts General Hospital, King's College London, and Stanford University School of Medicine, working in partnership with the health science company ZOE. Along with our other data, researchers can use this information to study potential longer-term health effects related to COVID-19, including in vulnerable populations like cancer survivors. 

Participants Send Saliva & Stool Samples for the Sake of Science

The gut microbiome consists of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other microorganisms that live in our digestive tract, and the oral microbiome consists of microorganisms that live in our mouths. Each person’s microbiome is unique and influenced by factors, such as diet, lifestyle, genetics, and the environment. Increasingly, scientists are finding that these microbial communities play a role in our health, including digestion, immune function, and inflammation.

Between 2020 and 2023, more than 10,000 participants provided saliva and stool samples, creating an important resource for studying the oral and gut microbiomes. These samples provide a “snapshot” of the microorganisms in the mouth and digestive tract and can be linked with the extensive health, lifestyle, and cancer information collected in CPS-3. This resource will help researchers better understand how the microbiome may influence the risk of developing cancer and other health outcomes and also identify new opportunities to help prevent cancer.

Cancer Survivors in CPS-3 Test Online Physical Activity Program

Physical activity is a safe and effective way for cancer survivors to improve their mental and physical health, yet many survivors do not get enough. 

To explore ways to help survivors become more active, we developed an online physical activity intervention designed specifically for cancer survivors, called HEALED (Health and Energy through Active Living Every Day) After Cancer. Between 2022 and 2023, over 400 cancer survivors participated in a trial testing the intervention.

CPS-3 Participants Help Evaluate Measurements of Diet and Physical Activity

On an ongoing basis, CPS-3 participants respond to survey questions to tell researchers about their lifestyle and behaviors, like diet and physical activity. It is important for researchers to review the survey questions we use so we can understand how well they measure participants’ habits and activities. Occasionally, researchers will use validation studies to assess these survey questions.

In 2015, all CPS-3 participants were invited to complete their routine follow-up survey. A small group of participants (about 750) completed phone interviews about their diet and eating habits, and they provided two blood and urine samples over a 6-month period, which researchers analyzed to measure markers of diet and nutrients. Researchers compared the information from these interviews and samples with the participants’ responses on their follow-up survey and found that the survey questions provide an accurate picture of participants’ typical eating habits. This helps ensure that future research using these survey questions is reliable.

Also in 2015, another small group of participants (about 700) provided additional information about their physical activity over a 1-year period. These participants completed 4 week-long diaries documenting their physical activity, and during 2 of those weeks, they wore an activity monitor (called an accelerometer) around their waists while they were awake. They also completed surveys about their physical activity at the beginning and end of the year. Researchers compared all of this information with the participants’ response on their routine follow-up survey and found that CPS-3 survey questions are reliable to assess different levels of physical activity. This helps ensure that future research using these survey questions is dependable.