Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Helping Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia or Lymphoma With Cancer-Related Fatigue

May 18, 2026 updated by: M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Intervention for Cancer Related Fatigue (CRF) in Patients With AML and Lymphoma

This trial studies how well cognitive behavioral therapy works in helping patients with acute myeloid leukemia or lymphoma with cancer-related fatigue. Behavioral therapy uses methods to help patients change the way they think and act. Behavioral skills may help patients with acute myeloid leukemia or lymphoma cope with anxiety, depression, and other factors that may influence their level of cancer-related fatigue.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

I. To determine whether acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and lymphoma patients with cancer-related fatigue (CRF) will be satisfied with the cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention, and if CBT will be feasible for AML and lymphoma patients with CRF where the feasibility will be based on adherence measurement.

SECONDARY OBJECTIVES:

I. To examine the preliminary effects of CBT on improvement of CRF (Functional Assessment of Cancer Illness Therapy (FACIT-F) - Fatigue subscale, its related symptoms, M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory - Acute Myeloid Leukemia / Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDASI-AML/MDS), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS), and Quality of Life (FACT-G) in AML and lymphoma patients receiving this combination regimen at the end of 8 weeks or 6 months.

EXPLORATORY OBJECTIVES:

I. To explore the effects of CBT on hope for future and burdens of treatment and their interference with patients' lives using the Herth Hope Index (HHI), and MDASI-AML/MDS.

OUTLINE:

Patients undergo CBT consisting of 7 counseling sessions, up to 45 minutes each over the phone.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

48

Phase

  • Phase 2

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
    • Texas
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • M D Anderson 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

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosis of AML or AML secondary to MDS (myelodysplastic syndrome) and lymphoma with fatigue >= 4/10 (0-10 scale) on the MDASI-AML/MDS.
  • Presence of fatigue for at least 2 weeks.
  • Normal cognition by Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale score of < 13 at baseline.
  • Hemoglobin > 8 g/L within 2 weeks of enrollment in the study; if the patient has not had blood drawn for a hemoglobin level in the past two weeks, one will be done to determine the eligibility.
  • Zubrod performance status =< 2.
  • Able to communicate in English or Spanish.
  • Seen at leukemia and lymphoma clinics at University of Texas (UT) MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas and its affiliates in University of Texas.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Has received CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) for any indication (e.g. depression, sleep disturbance) in the past 1 year.
  • Inability to comply with study protocol procedures.
  • Prior cancer diagnosis other than noted in the inclusion criterion #1.

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

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Supportive Care (CBT)
Patients undergo CBT consisting of 7 counseling sessions, up to 45 minutes each over the phone.
Other: Quality-of-Life Assessment
Ancillary studies
Other Names:
  • Quality of Life Assessment
Other: Questionnaire Administration
Ancillary studies
Behavioral: Cognitive Behavior Therapy
Undergo CBT
Other Names:
  • CT
  • CBT
  • cognitive therapy

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Adherence to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) defined as percentage of the total completed prescribed counseling sessions (7 sessions) the study patient is able to complete
Time Frame: Up to 8 weeks or 6 months
Up to 8 weeks or 6 months
Satisfaction with CBT assessed using a 5 point, fully word-anchored balanced bipolar scale (Satisfaction Assessment).
Time Frame: Up to 8 weeks
To determine if patients are satisfied with CBT, based on equal to or more than 75% of patients indicating their satisfaction with CBT with a rating of "somewhat satisfied" or "completely satisfied". Satisfaction will be assessed using a 5 point, fully word-anchored balanced bipolar scale (Satisfaction Assessment).
Up to 8 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Improvement of symptoms determined by M.D. Anderson Symptom Inventory - Acute Myeloid Leukemia / Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDASI-AML/MDS)
Time Frame: Baseline to 8 weeks or 6 months
MDASI symptom questionnaire answers range from 0 meaning "Not Present" to 10 meaning "As Bad as You Can Imagine".
Baseline to 8 weeks or 6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Collaborators

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Sriram Yennu, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

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 (Actual)

November 29, 2018

Primary Completion (Estimated)

September 11, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

September 11, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 15, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 19, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

November 20, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 18, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2018-0542 (Other Identifier: M D Anderson Cancer Center)
  • P30CA016672 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
  • NCI-2018-02528 (Registry Identifier: CTRP (Clinical Trial Reporting Program))

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Subscribe