Enhancing Connections Program in Improving Communication Between Patients With Incurable Cancer and Their Children

University of Washington

Status

Completed

Conditions

Advanced Malignant Neoplasm

Treatments

Other: Educational Intervention

Other: Questionnaire Administration

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

NIH

Identifiers

NCT02650583

9480 (Other Identifier)

NCI-2015-01941 (Registry Identifier)

P30CA015704 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

This pilot clinical trial studies the use of the Enhancing Connections Program in improving communication between patients with incurable cancer and their children. The Enhancing Connections Program is an educational program that may provide patients with new competencies to improve communication with their children and help them to cope with their parent's incurable cancer.

Full description

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

I. To test the feasibility of the study protocol in advanced cancer patients (recruitment/retention, dosage and fidelity of the intervention; program acceptability of program; and logistics).

II. To evaluate the short-term impact of the program on the diagnosed parents' and children's adjustment using a within group design (pre- and post-test design).

III. To compare outcomes from the Enhancing Connections Program with outcomes obtained from the completed Phase III trial (between group design).

OUTLINE:

Patients participate in Enhancing Connections Program comprising of anchoring patients to help their child, adding to listening skills, building on listening skills, being a detective of their child's coping, and celebrating success for 5 sessions. Patients also receive workbook which includes text from the sessions, handouts, and at-home assignments to be completed between sessions.

Enrollment

41 patients

Sex

All

Ages

25 to 65 years old

Volunteers

No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Parents will be eligible if they have a diagnosis of incurable cancer of any type
Read and write English among their languages of choice
Have a child 5-17 years old living at home who has been told their parent's cancer diagnosis
The child does not have learning challenges

Exclusion criteria

Parents will be excluded if they are enrolled in hospice at time of enrollment; (however, they will be allowed to continue in the study if they enroll in hospice after beginning the study)
Parents will be ineligible if their child lives in the home less than 50% of the time