Psychosocial Adjustment After Radiation Therapy in Patients With Cancer

September 29, 2015 updated by: Case Comprehensive Cancer Center

Psychosocial Adjustment During the Post-Radiation Treatment Transition

RATIONALE: Gathering information about psychological and social adjustment after radiation therapy in patients with cancer may help doctors plan the best treatment.

PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying psychosocial adjustment after radiation therapy in patients with breast cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, or prostate cancer.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

OBJECTIVES:

To describe psychosocial adjustment after radiotherapy in patients with stage I, II, or III breast, colorectal, lung, or prostate cancer.
To determine if cognitive appraisal of health predicts psychosocial adjustment of these patients after radiotherapy.
To examine whether social support moderates the relationship between cognitive appraisal of health and psychosocial adjustment of these patients after radiotherapy.
To examine whether self-efficacy for coping with cancer moderates the relationship between cognitive appraisal of health and psychosocial adjustment of these patients after radiotherapy.
To measure the effect of symptom distress, uncertainty, medical factors, and personal factors on cognitive appraisal of health of these patients before ending radiotherapy.

OUTLINE: Two weeks before completing planned radiotherapy, patients undergo assessment of stress appraisal and other factors predictive of post-radiotherapy psychosocial adjustment. Patients complete psychosocial assessments, including measures of patient perceptions of their illness (i.e., cognitive appraisal) and of the factors influencing their perceptions (i.e., uncertainty by the Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale-Community Form; symptom distress by the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale Short Form; and comorbidity by the Charlson Comorbidity Index). Measures of patient social support and self-efficacy for coping are also assessed. At 1 month after completion of radiotherapy, patients undergo repeat assessment of stress appraisal and psychosocial adjustment.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

United States
- Ohio
  - Cleveland, Ohio, United States, 44106-5065
    - Case Medical Center, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Probability Sample

Study Population

Primary care clinic

Description

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

Diagnosis of breast, colorectal, lung, or prostate cancer
- Stage I, II, or III disease
- Nonmetastatic disease
Undergoing first course of curative radiotherapy, as indicated in the medical record
- Receiving treatment as an outpatient
Hormone receptor status not specified

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Menopausal status not specified
Able to receive treatment as an outpatient
Lives in northeastern Ohio
Cognitively intact, as evidenced by orientation to person, place, and time
Has a telephone
No hearing impairment (must be able to hear instructions)
No malignancy expected to require surgery or chemotherapy ≤ 2 months after treatment

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

See Disease Characteristics
No prior radiotherapy for another type of cancer
No concurrent or planned chemotherapy or surgery for at least 2 months after radiotherapy
No concurrent treatment for recurrent cancer

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Relationship between stress appraisal (as assessed by CAHS at baseline) and psychosocial adjustment (as assessed by PAIS-SR at 1 month after radiotherapy) Time Frame: one month after radiotherapy	one month after radiotherapy
Relationship between stress appraisal and uncertainty, symptom distress, cancer stage, comorbidities, age, gender, race/ethnicity, and education at 2 weeks prior to completing radiotherapy Time Frame: 2 weeks prior to radiotherapy	2 weeks prior to radiotherapy
Social support (as assessed by MOS-SSS) and self-efficacy (as assessed by CBI-L v2.0) as moderators of the relationship between cognitive appraisal and adjustment Time Frame: At 1 month after completion of radiotherapy	At 1 month after completion of radiotherapy

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Case Comprehensive Cancer Center

Collaborators

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Investigators

Principal Investigator: Barbara Daly, PhD, RN, Case Medical Center, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center
Principal Investigator: Susan Mazanec, RN, Case Medical Center, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

August 1, 2008

Primary Completion (Actual)

February 1, 2009

Study Completion (Actual)

May 1, 2009

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 19, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria