Telenursing and Breast Cancer: The Turkish Case

Saglik Bilimleri Universitesi Gulhane Tip Fakultesi

Status: Completed

Conditions: Breast Cancer Female

Treatments: Behavioral: Telenursing and Counseling

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04480229

50687469-1280-2190-14

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of telenursing services on chemotherapy symptoms and comfort levels in patients with breast cancer in Turkey.

Full description

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of telenursing services on chemotherapy symptoms and comfort levels in patients with breast cancer in Turkey. The study employs an experimental research methodology with a sample of 96 ambulatory patients (48 experimental, 48 control) who were receiving chemotherapy for breast cancer for the first time in a state hospital. Research data were collected by using "Patient Information Form", "Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale", "General Comfort Questionnaire, "Symptoms Follow-up Form", and "Telephone Call Form". The experimental group received telenursing service every week until the end of the four-cycle chemotherapy treatment, which started one week after the first treatment. The control group did not receive any intervention. Investigators analyzed data with SPSS 15.0 (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) with comparative statistical methods of MannWhitney U Test, Chi-Square Test, One Way Analysis of Variance in Repeated Measurements, and Pearson Correlation.

Enrollment: 96 patients

Sex: Female

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• is volunteering to participate in the research,
• is 18 years of age or over,
• can communicate in Turkish,
• has Turkish literacy skills,
• has no hearing, vision problems, and mental disability that may hinder communication,
• is female,
• has a diagnosis of breast cancer for the first time in her life and consequently receiving chemotherapy treatment in the same protocols for the first time,
• did not have a different diagnosis of cancer and related chemotherapy treatment.

Exclusion criteria

• Having been diagnosed with breast cancer before and received chemotherapy treatment accordingly,
• Having been diagnosed with different cancers before and had chemotherapy treatment related to it,
• Cancer treatment with oral medications,
• Refuse to participate in the study
• Refuse education/counseling
• Not knowing Turkish

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

---

96 participants in 2 patient groups

Intervention Group

Experimental group

Description:

After the first treatment, every week the patients were called and consulted by telenursing. During the next there chemotherapy treatments, Edmonton Symptom Assessment System and General Comfort Questionnaire were filled. The study ended with the fourth cycle chemotherapy. A total of six telephone calls and 3 face-to-face follow-ups were done with each of the intervention group patients. Face-to-face follow-up with patients during chemotherapy treatments lasted for about 20-30 minutes, and patients were evaluated three times in terms of symptom severity and comfort level.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Telenursing and Counseling

No Intervention: Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

During their first treatment the "Patient Identification Form" was filled and they were trained, which is the routine practice of the clinic. Patients were informed about the "Symptom follow-up form", asked to mark the symptoms and signs they experienced due to the disease and treatment in the form between the two chemotherapy treatments and to note when they experienced and how they resolved this symptom. When the patients came to the second treatment, the first follow-up of the patients was done. The investigator filled Edmonton Symptom Assessment System and General Comfort Questionnaire forms via face-to-face interviews. The "Symptom Follow-up Form" given to the patients in the previous chemotherapy treatment was collected and the same new form was given. They were requested to bring this form in their next treatment. The same protocol was followed during the third and fourth chemotherapy treatment