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A stepped care stress management intervention on cancer‐related traumatic stress symptoms among breast cancer patients—a randomized study in group vs. individual setting
Author(s) -
Rissanen Ritva,
Nordin Karin,
Ahlgren Johan,
Arving Cecilia
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
psycho‐oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.41
H-Index - 137
eISSN - 1099-1611
pISSN - 1057-9249
DOI - 10.1002/pon.3763
Subject(s) - medicine , randomized controlled trial , breast cancer , traumatic stress , psychological intervention , anxiety , stress management , physical therapy , intervention (counseling) , cancer , depression (economics) , clinical psychology , hospital anxiety and depression scale , psychiatry , economics , macroeconomics
Abstract Objective To evaluate the mode of delivery of a stress management intervention, in a group or individual setting, on self‐reported cancer‐related traumatic stress symptoms. A secondary aim was to evaluate a stepped care approach. Methods All study participants ( n = 425), who were female, newly diagnosed with breast cancer and receiving standard oncological care were offered Step I of the stepped care approach, a stress management education (SME). Thereafter, they were screened for cancer‐related traumatic stress symptoms, and, if present ( n = 304), were invited to join Step II, a more intense intervention, derived from cognitive behavioral therapy, to which they were randomized to either a group ( n = 77) or individual ( n = 78) setting. To assess cancer‐related traumatic stress symptoms, participants completed the Impact of Event Scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale at the time of inclusion, three‐months post‐inclusion and approximately 12‐months post‐inclusion. Results The SME did not significantly decrease any of the cancer‐related traumatic stress symptoms. No statistically significant differences were found between the group and the individual setting interventions. However, only 54% of the participants attended the group setting compared to 91% for the individual setting. Conclusion The mode of delivery had no effect on the cancer‐related traumatic stress symptoms; however, the individual setting was preferred. In future studies, a preference‐based RCT design will be recommended for evaluating the different treatment effects. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.