Emotion and Symptom-focused Engagement for Caregivers (EASE-CG) Pilot Study (EASE-CG)

July 14, 2025 updated by: University Health Network, Toronto

Pilot Study of a Novel Psychotherapeutic Intervention for Caregivers of Patients With Acute Leukemia: Emotion and Symptom-focused Engagement for Caregivers (EASE-CG)

The purpose of this study is to test the feasibility and acceptability of an adapted psychosocial intervention, called Emotion and Symptom-focused Engagement for Caregivers (EASE-CG), to reduce traumatic stress symptoms and other psychological distress and increase well-being in primary caregivers of patients newly diagnosed with acute leukemia.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Emotion and Symptom-focused Engagement for Caregivers (EASE-CG) is a brief psychotherapeutic intervention designed for primary caregivers of patients newly diagnosed with acute leukemia (AL). The EASE-CG intervention was adapted from a previous psychotherapeutic intervention for adult patients newly diagnosed with AL, called Emotion and Symptom-focused Engagement (EASE). In a previous pilot trial, EASE was associated with reductions in traumatic stress and physical symptom burden in adult patients with AL.

EASE-CG is a sub-study of a multi-center, longitudinal, mixed-methods study on the experience of traumatic stress in primary caregivers of patients newly diagnosed with AL within three months of admission to the hospital (Main study). The purpose of this sub-study is to conduct a non-randomized, mixed-methods pilot study to test the feasibility and acceptability of EASE-CG. A subset of caregivers of pediatric patients from the Main study will be approached to participate in EASE-CG. Quantitative measures will be administered at baseline, 1, 3 (primary endpoint), 6, 9, and 12 months (Main study endpoint). Participants may be invited to brief, semi-structured interviews.

The study will take place at the Hospital for Sick Children; the largest leukemia treatment center in Canada for pediatric patients.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

40

Phase

  • Not Applicable

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

  • Canada
    • Ontario
      • Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5G 2M9
        • Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
      • Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5G 1X8
        • The Hospital for Sick Children

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:

  • Self-identified primary caregiver (i.e., person assuming the majority of care activities) or co-primary caregiver (i.e., assuming at least 40% of care activities alongside another co-primary caregiver) of an adult or pediatric patient who is newly diagnosed with acute leukemia within 3 months of admission to the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre or the Hospital for Sick Children
  • Age ≥18 years
  • Fluency in English

Exclusion Criteria: none

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: EASE-CG Intervention

Participants will be offered one EASE-CG therapy session every week for up to 12 weeks. Each session will last for approximately 30-60 minutes, delivered by a trained therapist at our center. Frequency and/or length of sessions may vary to accommodate the needs and availability of each participant.

Outcomes will be assessed at baseline, 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. Participants may be invited to brief, semi-structured interviews.
Behavioral: EASE-CG
EASE-CG is an adapted brief psychotherapeutic intervention with relational support and trauma-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) components.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5)
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 20-item reliable and valid self-report measure of the presence and severity of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms over the past month. Total PCL-5 scores may range from 0-80, with higher scores indicating increasingly severe PTSD symptoms. This DSM-5-concordant measure has been included to help validate the DSM-5-concordant version of the SASRQ.
12 weeks
Stanford Acute Stress Reaction Questionnaire (SASRQ-II)
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 30-item reliable, valid, and widely used self-report measure assessing the severity of traumatic stress symptoms over the past four weeks. Total SASRQ scores may range from 0-150, with higher scores indicating increasingly severe traumatic stress symptoms. This measure has been updated to be Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5)-concordant for acute stress disorder symptoms.
12 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Brief Experiences in Close Relationships Scale (ECR-M16)
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 16-item reliable and valid self-report measure of attachment security (i.e., the ability to rely on close others for support when distressed); in addition to a total score, it has subscales assessing anxious and avoidant attachment. Total ECR-M16 scores may range from 16-112, with higher scores indicating poorer attachment security (or greater attachment insecurity).
12 weeks
Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 9-item reliable and valid measure of depressive symptoms that has been widely used in patients with cancer. Total PHQ-9 scores may range from 0-27, with higher scores indicating increasingly severe depressive symptoms.
12 weeks
Caregiver Reaction Assessment (CRA) Scale
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 24-item reliable and valid measure of the positive and negative reactions to five dimensions of caregiver burden: (1) impact on schedule (i.e., disruption to usual daily activities) (5 items), (2) impact on finances (i.e., financial strain) (3 items), (3) lack of family support (5 items), (4) impact on caregiver's health (4 items), and (5) impact on caregiver's self-esteem (7 items). Higher scores indicate a stronger impact of caregiving on each dimension (either negative or positive). For dimensions 1-4, higher scores indicate higher negative experiences of caregiving. For dimension 5, higher scores indicate a higher level of positive caregiving experience. No overall summed score is used.
12 weeks
Family Satisfaction with End-of-Life Care (FAMCARE) Scale
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 20-item reliable and valid measure of satisfaction with health care practitioners' behaviour towards family caregivers and their loved ones with advanced cancer. Total FAMCARE scores may range from 20-100, with higher scores indicating greater caregiver satisfaction with health care practitioners.
12 weeks
Traditional Masculinity-Femininity (TMF) Scale
Time Frame: Baseline
A 6-item reliable and valid measure of gender role, or the extent to which people view their interests, behaviour, attitudes and other aspects of themselves as masculine or feminine. Total TMF scores may range from 6-42, with higher scores indicating a greater sense of femininity. A score of four indicates an equal balance between masculine and feminine traits.
Baseline
Enhancing Recovery In Coronary Heart Disease (ENRICHD) Social Support Inventory (ESSI)
Time Frame: 12 weeks
A 7-item reliable and valid measure of the perceived availability of social support. Total ESSI scores may range from 6-31, with higher scores indicating greater perceived social support.
12 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

University Health Network, Toronto

Collaborators

The Hospital for Sick Children

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Lindsay Jibb, RN PhD, The Hospital for Sick Children
  • Principal Investigator: Gary Rodin, MD FRCPC, University Health Network, Toronto

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

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)

April 12, 2022

Primary Completion (Actual)

December 31, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

December 31, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 1, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 1, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

February 11, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 17, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 14, 2025

Last Verified

July 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 20-5452

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.

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