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Stress Management Therapy for Chemotherapy Patients
Untitled Document
Name of the Trial
Randomized Study of Stress Management Therapy in Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy
for Cancer (MCC-0501). See the protocol
summary 3.
Principal Investigators
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Dr. Teletia Taylor
Principal Investigator |
Dr. Teletia Taylor, Howard University, and Dr. Susan McMillan, University of
South Florida.
Why This Trial Is Important
Undergoing treatment for cancer may be one of life's most stressful experiences.
Patients scheduled for chemotherapy may wonder about how they will deal with
its well-known side effects, such as nausea, vomiting, hair loss, and fatigue.
These and other uncertainties can lead to overwhelming stress, which can reduce
a patient's quality of life and, possibly, interfere with their recovery.
In this study, patients with newly diagnosed cancer and scheduled to undergo
chemotherapy will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group will
receive standard psychosocial care along with stress management training, while
the other will receive standard psychosocial care alone. The self-administered
training will consist of multimedia information and instructions about three
stress management techniques: progressive muscle relaxation and guided imagery,
abdominal breathing, and coping skills.
Hispanic/Latino patients reportedly experience a disproportionately higher
level of suffering from cancer and treatment-related stress. This is due, in
part, to a lack of culturally relevant resources in Spanish. This study uses
culturally sensitive self-education tools in both English and Spanish that are
linguistically appropriate and incorporate Hispanic/Latino cultural beliefs.
"The adverse effects of chemotherapy on quality of life are well documented,"
said Dr. Taylor. "Stress management techniques have been shown to have
beneficial effects on nausea, vomiting, and emotional distress before the administration
of chemotherapy as well as in the days following chemotherapy.
"The primary objective of this study is to determine whether a self-administered
stress management intervention, previously found to be beneficial to primarily
non-Hispanic chemotherapy patients in a single clinical setting, is effective
in improving quality of life and decreasing psychological distress (anxiety
and depression) in Hispanic and non-Hispanic patients receiving cancer chemotherapy
in multiple community clinical settings. We have met our accrual target for
non-Hispanics, so the trial is now open only to Hispanic patients," Dr.
Taylor added.
For More Information
See the lists of eligibility
criteria and study sites 3 or call the NCI's Cancer Information Service at
1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237). The toll-free call is confidential.
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