Telephone therapy relieves fatigue and improves the quality of life of breast cancer survivors

Telephone therapy relieves fatigue and improves the quality of life of breast cancer survivors

With medical advances, more than 169,000 people in the United States are living with metastatic breast cancer. Treating debilitating symptoms has become increasingly important. Fatigue remains a significant challenge, affecting up to 63 percent of patients and severely impacting daily functions.

A study demonstrates the effectiveness of telephone acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) in reducing the interference of fatigue in functioning and improving quality of life in metastatic breast cancer survivors. ACT is a behavioral intervention that shows promise in pilot studies in advanced cancer. Rather than reducing symptoms, the goal of the action is to promote psychological flexibility, which consists of mindfulness/acceptance and engagement/behavior change processes.

The researchers also found that the Remote Control Act intervention has shown evidence of feasibility and promise in reducing sleep interference in patients' functioning. Cancer-related fatigue is often exacerbated by the physiological consequences of inadequate sleep.

“The women I worked with in the study often reported that their sleep quality had improved,” Associate Professor of Medicine at Indiana University Medical School of Medicine and a clinician-scientist at IU Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center.

"The ACT intervention helped participants fall asleep more easily. We believe sleep quality improved for some participants because they practiced mindfulness, which was shown to support sleep."

During the clinical trial, 250 survivors living with metastatic breast cancer were randomly assigned to six weekly telephone sessions or education/support. Results from the Telephone Telephone Intervention suggest that short, long-distance calls with a therapist help encourage survivors to practice mindfulness in their daily lives, resulting in reduced fatigue interference with functioning.

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers affecting women around the world. We have no effective drugs for fatigue in advanced cancer. I was attracted to acceptance and commitment therapy as a potential behavioral intervention to reduce the negative effects of fatigue on functioning because of its evidence of effectiveness in patients with chronic pain as well as people with mental illness. “

Catherine Mosher, PhD, affiliate scientist of the Regenstrief Institute and lead author

“Mindfulness involves focused attention on the present moment, including the symptoms one may be experiencing and feelings and feelings, and an attitude of compassionate acceptance of these experiences,” said Dr. Mosher, also a behavioral scientist in the Department of Psychology, Indiana University Indianapolis School of Science. "We hypothesized that this would disrupt more malaptive responses to fatigue, e.g.."

This study informs clinical care by demonstrating that a novel, telephone-delivered ACT intervention can reduce sleepiness interference in patients with metastatic breast cancer and shows promise in reducing sleep disturbance. Training in ACT is accessible to clinicians from various disciplines. Next steps include testing the intervention in culturally diverse cancer populations and disseminating the intervention.

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