Palliative Care in Improving Quality of Life and Symptoms in Patients With Stage III-IV Pancreatic or Ovarian Cancer

Palliative Care in Improving Quality of Life and Symptoms in Patients With Stage III-IV Pancreatic or Ovarian Cancer

This randomized clinical trial studies palliative care in improving quality of life and symptoms in patients with stage III-IV pancreatic or ovarian cancer. Palliative therapy may help patients with advanced pancreatic or ovarian cancer live more comfortably.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES: I. Test the effects of a concurrent palliative care planning intervention (PCPI) on overall quality of life (QOL) and symptom burden. II. Test the effects of a concurrent PCPI on anxiety and depression. III. Test the effects of a concurrent PCPI on overall survival. IV. Test the effects of a concurrent PCPI on health care resource use. OUTLINE: Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 arms. ARM I: Patients undergo a comprehensive physical, psychological, social, and spiritual palliative care assessment. Patients also receive a workbook that covers physical and psychological well-being and social and spiritual well-being, delivered over 2 educational sessions. ARM II: Patients receive standard care plus attention comprising two telephone contacts. After completion of study, patients are followed up at 1, 3, and 6 months.

Recurrent Ovarian Epithelial Cancer, Recurrent Ovarian Germ Cell Tumor, Recurrent Pancreatic Cancer, Stage III Pancreatic Cancer, Stage IIIA Ovarian Epithelial Cancer, Stage IIIA Ovarian Germ Cell Tumor, Stage IIIB Ovarian Epithelial Cancer, Stage IIIB Ovarian Germ Cell Tumor, Stage IIIC Ovarian Epithelial Cancer, Stage IIIC Ovarian Germ Cell Tumor, Stage IV Ovarian Epithelial Cancer, Stage IV Ovarian Germ Cell Tumor, Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer

Patients undergo a comprehensive physical, psychological, social, and spiritual palliative care assessment. Patients also receive a workbook that covers physical and psychological well-being and social and spiritual well-being, delivered over 2 educational sessions.

Overall QOL, assessed by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Hepatobiliary (FACT-Hep) or the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Ovarian (FACT-O)

Compared between groups and by diagnoses using two-way contingency table analysis, two way analysis of variance (ANOVA) according to level of measurement.

Compared demographically by group according to completeness of the intervention using t-tests or one-way ANOVAs according to the level of measurement of the variables. Tested using a 2x2 contingency table analysis and the McNemar test statistic.

Compared demographically by group according to completeness of the intervention using t-tests or one-way ANOVAs according to the level of measurement of the variables. Tested using a 2x2 contingency table analysis and the McNemar test statistic.

Compared demographically by group according to completeness of the intervention using t-tests or one-way ANOVAs according to the level of measurement of the variables.

Health care resource use including presence of advanced care planning, chemotherapy in the last 14 days of life, and length of time between hospice referral and death

Inclusion Criteria: Diagnosis of pancreatic or ovarian cancer Confirmed stage III or IV disease Patients who are within one year from initial diagnosis Able to read or understand English-this is included because most of the patient-reported outcome measures are not validated in linguistically diverse populations; the intent is to adapt and test the intervention in a future study with linguistically diverse populations Ability to read and/or understand the study protocol requirements, and provide written informed consent