Educational Counseling in Improving Communication and Quality of Life in Spouses and Breast Cancer Patients
Anxiety Disorder, Depression, Ductal Breast Carcinoma in Situ
About this trial
This is an interventional supportive care trial for Anxiety Disorder
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
- Spouses (in both heterosexual couples and same-sex couples) of women diagnosed within the past 6 months with stage 0, I, II or III breast cancer (in situ/local/regional disease) will be eligible to participate, as will the diagnosed wife/partner
- Spouses and patients must be married or cohabiting for at least 6 months
- Spouses and patients must have English as one of their languages of choice (they can be multilingual)
- Spouses and patients must live within 25 miles of the University of Washington (UW) study center
- Spouses/partners must be willing to give a sample of blood and/or sputum at time of first and second data collections
Exclusion Criteria:
- Woman diagnosed with stage IV or recurrent breast cancer or who is > 6 months post-diagnosis
- Woman and/or spouse not able to read and write in English
- Spouses could not participate if the ill partner refused participation
Sites / Locations
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center/University of Washington Cancer Consortium
Arms of the Study
Arm 1
Arm 2
Active Comparator
Experimental
Arm I (educational booklet)
Arm II (Helping Her Heal program)
Participants receive the "What's Happening to the Woman I Love?" booklet, which focuses on ways to understand and deal with marital communication and relationship issues arising from breast cancer diagnosis.
Participants undergo the Helping Her Heal educational counseling program comprising 5 1-hour sessions 2 weeks apart. SESSION I: Participants learn stress management skills and discover ways stress affects themselves and their partner. SESSION II: Participants practice attentive listening and reduce the tendency to try to distract patients from talking about sad or difficult aspects of the cancer experience. SESSION III: Patients learn to help their spouse talk when she is quiet or withdrawn, to add to their understanding of what she is thinking and feeling, and to add to their ways of supporting her during especially difficult times with the cancer. SESSION IV: Participants learn strategies for physically reconnecting with spouses. SESSION V: Participants review skills from prior sessions, identify strategies he or she will continue to use to manage their personal stress, and identify ways to maintain connection and support.