Berger, A. M., VonEssen, S., Kuhn, B. R., Piper, B. F., Farr, L., Agrawal, S., & ... Higginbotham, P. (2002). Feasibilty of a sleep intervention during adjuvant breast cancer chemotherapy. Oncology Nursing Forum, 29, 1431–1441.
To evaluate the feasibility of an intervention designed to promote sleep and modify fatigue during four cycles of adjuvant breast cancer chemotherapy.
A multicomponent cognitive-behavioral therapy in the form of a four-part intervention consisting of sleep hygiene counseling, relaxation therapy, sleep restriction, and an individualized sleep promotion plan (ISPP) stimulus control was used. It began two days before the first chemotherapy treatment, was revised before each treatment, and was reinforced seven days after each treatment. Restrictions were delivered by RNs. Sleep and fatigue were the outcomes measured.
The study was conducted in the Midwestern United States, in urban oncology clinics and the patients’ homes.
Patients were undergoing the active treatment phase of care.
This was a prospective, repeated measures, quasiexperimental, feasibility study.
Sleep latency, sleep efficiency, total rest, and ratings of feeling refreshed on awakening were stable. Time awake after sleep onset and nighttime awakenings exceeded desired levels.