Evaluation of a Pre-surgical Virtual Reality Simulation for Cancer Surgery Patients

University of Manitoba

Status: Completed

Conditions: Anxiety State

Treatments: Device: Virtual reality operating room simulation

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04544618

HS23957 (H2020:247)

322523 340300 2000 (Other Grant/Funding Number)

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study will pilot test and explore the feasibility of a virtual reality simulation of the operating room environment to reduce anxiety/distress in cancer surgery patients. Study objectives are to evaluate recruitment and data collection procedures, outcome measures, participant feedback on the virtual reality operating room intervention, and the inclusion of a treatment as usual group, and effects of the intervention on symptoms of anxiety/distress. Results of this study will inform the design of an upcoming larger-scale RCT to assess the efficacy of this intervention

Enrollment: 23 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Over the age of 18
• Can speak and read English
• Has a cancer diagnosis
• Scheduled/being scheduled to undergo cancer surgery under general anesthesia at the Health Sciences Centre (Winnipeg, MB)

Exclusion criteria

• Those who do not meet any inclusion criteria
• Those who are not competent to provide informed consent (e.g., due to cognitive impairment)
• Those who are unable to participate in a virtual reality intervention (e.g., due to visual/auditory impairment)

Trial design

Primary purpose: Other

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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23 participants in 2 patient groups

Intervention group

Experimental group

Description:

Participants will be exposed to a virtual reality simulation of the operating room environment for a minimum of ten minutes.

Treatment:

Device: Virtual reality operating room simulation

Treatment as usual group

No Intervention group

Description:

Participants will receive standard of care with no additional intervention aside from information received at their surgical oncology appointment and optional preoperative education classes (available to all patients).