Group Interventions for Breast Cancer Survivors

Development of Group Interventions for Breast Cancer Survivors

The purpose of this study is to compare two types of groups for breast cancer survivors: a Meaning-Centered Group and a Discussion Group. Many breast cancer survivors seek help to deal with the emotional burden of having gone through the cancer experience. Participation in groups offering support often helps cancer survivors cope with stressors of life after having had cancer by giving them a place to express their feelings. The "Meaning-Centered Group" is intended to teach breast cancer survivors how to maintain or even increase a sense of meaning and purpose in their lives after treatment for cancer. The "Discussion Group" is intended to help breast cancer survivors cope by giving them a place to get support from other breast cancer survivors.

The goal of this study is to compare the benefits of these two types of group approaches for breast cancer survivors. The study is also testing the benefits and feasibility of conducting the groups virtually using a telephone and computer.

Study Overview

• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Conditions: Breast Cancer Survivor
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: manualized group intervention; Behavioral: standardized, manualized group intervention

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 104
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New York
    • Commack, New York, United States
      • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center at Commack
    • New York, New York, United States, 10065
      • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• History of non-metastatic breast cancer (DCIS or Stage I, II, or III) as recorded in the medical record at MSKCC by self-report, or by outside correspondence, including a study checklist signed by a physician for patients outside of MSKCC
• Post completion of treatment (may be on hormone therapy, such as Tamoxifen or monoclonal antibody, such as Herceptin or Pertuzumab)) for any type of cancer as confirmed by the medical record at MSKCC, by self-report, or by outside correspondence, including a study checklist signed by a physician for patients outside of MSKCC
• Age 18 or older
• Access to a telephone, computer (e.g. desktop, laptop, smartphone, tablet) and Internet

For Phase 2 only:

• A score of ≥ to 4 on the Distress Thermometer (DT) and indication that this distress is related in some way to the patient's breast cancer or survivorship
• If taking medication for mood, anxiety, depression, thoughts, sensory experiences such as hallucinations, or sleep, stable and consistent enough in dosage and use of that medication so as to not result in a clinically significant change as determined by the study PI/co-PI or, confirmed by reports in the medical record at MSKCC, by selfreport, or by outside correspondence, including a study checklist signed by a physician for patients outside of MSKCC
• Did not participate in Phase 1

Exclusion Criteria:

• Evidence of or treatment metastatic disease
• Significant psychiatric or cognitive disturbance sufficient, in the investigator's judgment, to preclude providing informed consent or participating in the groups (i.e., acute psychiatric symptoms which require individual treatment).

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Meaning-Centered Group for Breast Cancer Survivors (MCG-BCS)	Behavioral: manualized group intervention; MCG-BCS manual outlines 8 approximately, 90-minute modules: 1) Concepts & Sources of Meaning; 2) Identity, Cancer Survivorship, & Meaning; 3) Historical Sources of Meaning: Past Legacy; 4) Historical Sources of Meaning: Present & Future Legacy; 5) Attitudinal Sources of Meaning: Encountering Life's Limitations; 6) Creative Sources of Meaning: Creativity & Responsibility; 7) Experiential Sources of Meaning: Connecting with Life via Love, Beauty, & Humor; and 8) Transitions: Reflections & Hopes for the Future.
Active Comparator: Discussion Group (DG)	Behavioral: standardized, manualized group intervention; DG is a standardized, manualized group developed by the MSKCC Psychiatry Service and utilized in a similar form in our completed and ongoing RCTs of MCGP. Based on models described by Rogers and Bloch, the essential components include reassurance, explanation, education, encouragement, and permission for expression. The process emphasizes Rogerian concepts (e.g., empathic understanding) and avoids techniques that are not exclusively supportive. The content focuses on education about here-and-now topics relevant to BCS (e.g., maintaining and eliciting social support, financial strains, return to work, physical symptom management), allowing emotional expression and discussion of difficult topics.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
feasibility as measured by the proportion of patients enrolled who complete 4 out of 8 modules, which should not be not lower than 40%.	2 years

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
• Collaborators: American Cancer Society, Inc.
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Monique James, MD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Publications and helpful links

Helpful Links

• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: January 1, 2013
• Primary Completion (Estimated): January 1, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): January 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: January 21, 2013
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 21, 2013
• First Posted (Estimated): January 24, 2013

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): February 5, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 3, 2026
• Last Verified: February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Interventions; Meaning-Centered Group (MCG); Discussion Group (DG); Modules; Sessions; 12-291
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neoplasms by Site; Neoplasms; Skin Diseases; Breast Diseases; Breast Neoplasms
• Other Study ID Numbers: 12-291