Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Børøsund, Elin
• Ehlers, Shawna L.
• Clark, Matthew M.
• Andrykowski, Michael A.
• Cvancarova Småstuen, Milada
• Solberg Nes, Lise

Titel

Digital stress management in cancer: Testing StressProffen in a 12‐month randomized controlled trial

Ist Teil von

• Cancer, 2022-04, Vol.128 (7), p.1503-1512

Ort / Verlag

United States: Wiley Subscription Services, Inc

Erscheinungsjahr

2022

Quelle

Alma/SFX Local Collection

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• BACKGROUND Cognitive‐behavioral stress management interventions are associated with improved psychological well‐being for cancer survivors. The availability of, access to, and outreach of these in‐person interventions are limited, however. The current study, therefore, evaluated the efficacy of StressProffen, a digital application (app)–based stress management intervention for cancer survivors, in a 12‐month randomized controlled trial. METHODS Cancer survivors 1 year or less after their treatment (N = 172) were randomized to the StressProffen intervention (n = 84) or a usual‐care control group (n = 88). The intervention was delivered in a simple blended care model: 1) 1 in‐person introduction session, 2) 10 app‐based cognitive‐behavioral stress management modules, and 3) 2 follow‐up phone calls. Stress (Perceived Stress Scale), anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), self‐regulatory fatigue (Self‐Regulatory Fatigue 18), and health‐related quality of life (HRQOL; RAND‐36) were examined at the baseline and at 6 and 12 months. Generalized linear models for repeated measures were fitted to compare effects over time. RESULTS Participants were mainly female (82%), had a mean age of 52 years (standard deviation, 11.3 years; range, 20‐78 years), and had a variety of cancer types (mostly breast cancer [48%]). Over the 12‐month study time, the intervention group reported significantly decreased stress (P < .001), depression (P = .003), and self‐regulatory fatigue (P = .002) as well as improved HRQOL (for 6 of 8 domains, P ≤ .015) in comparison with controls. The largest favored effects for the intervention group were observed at 6 months: stress (estimated mean difference [MD], –5.1; P < .001), anxiety (MD, –1.4; P = .015), depression (MD, –2.1; P < .001), self‐regulatory fatigue (MD, –4.9; P < .001), and HRQOL (7 of 8 domains; P ≤ .037). CONCLUSIONS Digital stress management interventions such as StressProffen have the potential to extend the outreach of psychological interventions and provide easily available and effective psychosocial support for cancer survivors. In a randomized controlled trial over a 12‐month period, cancer survivors with access to StressProffen, a digital cognitive‐behavioral stress management intervention, have reported significant reductions in perceived stress, depression, and self‐regulatory fatigue and significant increases in health‐related quality of life in comparison with controls. Digital psychosocial interventions such as StressProffen have the potential to provide easily available and effective psychosocial support for cancer survivors.