Web-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Distressed Cancer Patients: Randomized Controlled Trial

S K Chambers; Lee M Ritterband; Frances Thorndike; Lisa Nielsen; Joanne F Aitken; Samantha Clutton; Paul A Scuffham; Philippa H Youl; Bronwyn Morris; Peter D Baade; Jeff Dunn

doi:10.2196/jmir.8850

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Web-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Distressed Cancer Patients: Randomized Controlled Trial

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Web-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Distressed Cancer Patients: Randomized Controlled Trial

S K Chambers, Lee M Ritterband, Frances Thorndike, Lisa Nielsen, Joanne F Aitken, Samantha Clutton, Paul A Scuffham, Philippa H Youl, Bronwyn Morris, Peter D Baade, …

Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol.20(1), e42

2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.8850

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Abstract

cancer

mental health

psychological distress

randomized controlled trial (RCT)

health services delivery

Background: Web-based interventions present a potentially cost-effective approach to supporting self-management for cancer patients; however, further evidence for acceptability and effectiveness is needed. Objective: The goal of our research was to assess the effectiveness of an individualized Web-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on improving psychological and quality of life outcomes in cancer patients with elevated psychological distress. Methods: A total of 163 distressed cancer patients (111 female, 68.1%) were recruited through the Queensland Cancer Registry and the Cancer Council Queensland Cancer Helpline and randomly assigned to either a Web-based tailored CBT intervention (CancerCope) (79/163) or a static patient education website (84/163). At baseline and 8-week follow-up we assessed primary outcomes of psychological and cancer-specific distress and unmet psychological supportive care needs and secondary outcomes of positive adjustment and quality of life. Results: Intention-to-treat analyses showed no evidence of a statistically significant intervention effect on primary or secondary outcomes. However, per-protocol analyses found a greater decrease for the CancerCope group in psychological distress (P=.04), cancer-specific distress (P=.02), and unmet psychological care needs (P=.03) from baseline to 8 weeks compared with the patient education group. Younger patients were more likely to complete the CancerCope intervention. Conclusions: This online CBT intervention was associated with greater decreases in distress for those patients who more closely adhered to the program. Given the low costs and high accessibility of this intervention approach, even if only effective for subgroups of patients, the potential impact may be substantial. Trial Registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12613001026718; https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=364768&isReview=true (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6uPvpcovl)

Details

Title: Web-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Distressed Cancer Patients: Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: S K Chambers (Author) - Griffith University
Lee M Ritterband (Author) - University of Virginia, United States
Frances Thorndike (Author) - BeHealth Solutions, United States
Lisa Nielsen (Author) - Cancer Council Queensland
Joanne F Aitken (Author) - Griffith University
Samantha Clutton (Author) - Cancer Council Queensland
Paul A Scuffham (Author) - Griffith University
Philippa H Youl (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Bronwyn Morris (Author) - Menzies School of Health Research
Peter D Baade (Author) - Griffith University
Jeff Dunn (Author) - Griffith University
Publication details: Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol.20(1), e42; 9
Publisher: J M I R Publications, Inc.
Date published: 2018
DOI: 10.2196/jmir.8850
ISSN: 1438-8871
Copyright note: Copyright © Suzanne K Chambers, Lee M Ritterband, Frances Thorndike, Lisa Nielsen, Joanne F Aitken, Samantha Clutton, Paul A Scuffham, Philippa Youl, Bronwyn Morris, Peter D Baade, Jeff Dunn. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 31.01.2018. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on http://www.jmir.org/, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.
Organisation Unit: University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Health and Sport Sciences - Legacy
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99451452002621
Output Type: Journal article

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