Evaluation of the telehealth making sense of brain tumor psychological support intervention for people with primary brain tumor and their caregivers: A randomized controlled trial.
Psychooncology
; 32(9): 1385-1394, 2023 09.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37409906
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
This pragmatic randomized control trial aimed to evaluate clinical efficacy of the Making Sense of Brain Tumour program delivered via videoconferencing (Tele-MAST) for improving mental health and quality of life (QoL) relative to standard care in individuals with primary brain tumor (PBT).METHOD:
Adults with PBT experiencing at least mild distress (Distress Thermometer ≥4) and caregivers were randomly allocated to the 10-session Tele-MAST program or standard care. Mental health and QoL were assessed pre-intervention, post-intervention (primary endpoint), and 6-weeks and 6-months follow-up. The primary outcome was clinician-rated depressive symptoms on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale.RESULTS:
82 participants with PBT (34% benign, 20% lower-grade glioma, 46% high-grade glioma) and 36 caregivers were recruited (2018-2021). Controlling for baseline functioning, Tele-MAST participants with PBT had lower depressive symptoms at post-intervention (95% CI 10.2-14.6, vs. 15.2-19.6, p = 0.002) and 6-weeks post-intervention (95% CI 11.5-15.8 vs. 15.6-19.9, p = 0.010) than standard care, and were almost 4 times more likely to experience clinically reduced depression (OR, 3.89; 95% CI 1.5-9.9). Tele-MAST participants with PBT also reported significantly better global QoL, emotional QoL and lower anxiety at post-intervention and 6-weeks post-intervention than standard care. There were no significant intervention effects for caregivers. At 6-months follow-up participants with PBT who received Tele-MAST reported significantly better mental health and QoL relative to pre-intervention.CONCLUSIONS:
Tele-MAST was found to be more effective for reducing depressive symptoms at post-intervention than standard care for people with PBT but not caregivers. Tailored and extended psychological support may be beneficial for people with PBT.Key words
Full text:
1
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Brain Neoplasms
/
Telemedicine
/
Glioma
Type of study:
Clinical_trials
Limits:
Adult
/
Humans
Language:
En
Year:
2023
Type:
Article