Acceptability and Feasibility of a Guided Biopsychosocial Online Intervention for Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy.
Miriam GrappFriederike RosenbergerElena HemleinEva KleinHans Christoph FriederichImad MaatoukPublished in: Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education (2020)
Chemotherapy is a physically and psychologically highly demanding treatment, and specific Internet-based interventions for cancer patients addressing both physical side effects and emotional distress during chemotherapy are scarce. This study examined the feasibility and acceptability of a guided biopsychosocial online intervention for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy (OPaCT). A pre-post, within-participant comparison, mixed-methods research design was followed. Patients starting chemotherapy at the outpatient clinic of the National Center for Tumor Diseases in Heidelberg, Germany, were enrolled. Feasibility and acceptability were evaluated through intervention uptake, attrition, adherence and participant satisfaction. As secondary outcomes, PHQ-9, GAD-7, SCNS-SF34-G and CBI-B-D were administered. A total of N = 46 patients participated in the study (female 76.1%). The age of participants ranged from 29 to 70 years (M = 49.3, SD = 11.3). The most prevalent tumour diseases were breast (45.7%), pancreatic (19.6%), ovarian (13.1%) and prostate cancer (10.8%). A total of N = 37 patients (80.4%) completed the OPaCT intervention. Qualitative and quantitative data showed a high degree of participant satisfaction. Significant improvements in the SCNS-SF34 subscale 'psychological needs' were found. Study results demonstrate the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. The results show that OPaCT can be implemented well, both in the treatment process and in participants' everyday lives. Although it is premature to make any determination regarding the efficacy of the intervention tested in this feasibility study, these results suggest that OPaCT has the potential to reduce unmet psychological care needs of patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Keyphrases
- randomized controlled trial
- patients undergoing
- end stage renal disease
- prostate cancer
- chronic kidney disease
- ejection fraction
- locally advanced
- newly diagnosed
- healthcare
- prognostic factors
- palliative care
- peritoneal dialysis
- physical activity
- type diabetes
- primary care
- systematic review
- patient reported outcomes
- social media
- mental health
- radical prostatectomy
- insulin resistance
- adipose tissue
- health information
- climate change
- rectal cancer
- combination therapy
- lymph node metastasis
- young adults
- childhood cancer
- tandem mass spectrometry
- liquid chromatography