Psychosocial Oncology
Center for Psycho-oncology and Palliative Care Research
Coping with Cancer Study
PI: Holly G. Prigerson, PhD
CA106370, MH63892
Study participation contact: Susan_Anderson@dfci.harvard.edu
Study objectives
The primary aims of the proposed research are to:
- Determine the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among advanced cancer patients and their informal primary caregivers (e.g.. spouse, adult children);
- Examine effects of mental health and treatment of psychiatric disorders on patient and caregiver's quality of life and care and the caregiver's bereavement adjustment; and
- Examine ethnic disparities in preferences, quality of life, and care among advanced cancer patients and their caregivers
Research plan
- Multi-site NCI and NIMH funded study. Other sites include Yale, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, West Haven VAMC, University of Texas Southwestern Cancer Centers, and Parkland Palliative Care Service - Mt Sinai School of Medicine.
- Longitudinal:
- Advanced cancer patient baseline assessment
- Caregiver baseline assessment
- Post-mortem assessment one-week following patient's death
- Caregiver follow-up six months after patient's death
- Samples: Recruiting 800 cancer patient and informal primary caregivers (e.g., spouses, adult children) dyads
- Inclusion Criteria:
- Patients:
Advanced, incurable cancer with distant metastases - must have available informal caregiver
- Patients:
- Exclusion Criteria: Patients and Caregivers
- Not severely cognitively impaired
- Not too weak or frail to complete a 45-minute interview
- Not age 20 years or younger
Participant payment: $25/interview
Projects developing from Coping with Cancer Study and their fit with the Center for Psycho-oncology and Palliative Care Research
The Coping with Cancer study (CWC) has become a valuable resource of the Center for Psycho-oncology and Palliative Care. The CWC also provides a resource for training and development in palliative and mental health cancer research. It also provides investigators preliminary data for related research reports and proposals. Some of these include the following projects:
- Lauren Vanderwerker's NIA K, ACS with Sean Morrison at Mt Sinai, to study ethnic disparities in acceptability and access to palliative care;
- Mary Buss's NCI K, ACS, matched controls for study of delirium on quality of care and caregiver burden at the end of life;
- Amy Sullivan's ACS career development study of gender differences in end of life care;
- Vicki Jackson's NCI R03 to study the effects of physician factors on quality of end of life care;
- Joseph Greer's publications and ASCO presentation on anxiety disorders in advanced cancer patients used in support of his NIMH K award of CBT for cancer patients with anxiety;
- Kara Zivin Bambauer's NIMH K award and publications on stigmatization, mental health and mental health service use in depressed advanced cancer patient caregivers;
- Ellen McCarthy's R01 proposal to the study of Asian-American end of life care;
- Tracy Balboni's report on religious coping and outcomes of pastoral care in advanced cancer patients;
- Tanja Vollmer's study of religious coping and survival in advanced cancer patients;
- Bonnie Zhang's study testing IRT models of anxiety disorders in prep for June R01 to refine diagnostic criteria for GAD in advanced cancer patients;
- Paul Maciejewski's R01 of MDD diagnoses;
- Liz Paulk/Meghan study of factors influencing patient's end of life treatment preferences;
- Brett Litz's online early intervention for bereaved persons by piloting the Bereavement Challenges scale;
- Lisa Podgurski's study of the association between subjective and objective quality of life at the end of life;
- Alaka Ray's study of the benefits and costs of prognostic awareness;
- Kam Reams doctoral dissertation on ethnic disparities in mental health among advanced cancer patients and caregivers;
- Michelle Pearce's study of religious coping with cancer patient caregiving; and
- Nalini Tarakeshwar's study of religious coping and quality of life.
