Northouse, L., Kershaw, T., Mood, D., & Schafenacker, A. (2005). Effects of a family intervention on the quality of life of women with recurrent breast cancer and their family caregivers. Psycho-Oncology, 14, 478–491.
To determine if patients with advanced breast cancer and their family caregivers involved in a family-focused intervention report better appraisal, coping, and quality of life and less uncertainty and hopelessness than do similar people involved in standard care only
Dyads (patient/primary family caregiver) were assessed at baseline and stratified according to type of current treatment and number of breast cancer recurrences and then randomized into a usual care group or experimental group (usual care plus FOCUS program). The FOCUS (family involvement, optimistic attitude, coping effectiveness, uncertainty reduction, and symptom management) program was a family-focused information and support intervention of about 1.5 hours on three occasions scheduled one month apart. Intervention boosters occurred via prearranged follow-up 30-minute telephone conversations with both patients and caregivers led by the same nurse. Dyads completed assessments at baseline, three months after the home visits, and six month following phone conversations.
Active antitumor treatment phase
A prospective, longitudinal, randomized clinical trial design was used.
Patients who received the FOCUS program reported a significant decrease in negative appraisal of illness from baseline to three months (p < 0.008), while patients who received usual care did not. However, at six months, the FOCUS and usual care groups had similar scores on this dimension. FOCUS group patients significantly decreased their hopelessness score from baseline (p < 0.03), but the usual care group significantly increased their hopelessness score (p < 0.03). At six months postintervention, no significant difference in hopelessness scores existed between groups. FOCUS group caregivers showed a similar significant (p < 0.004) decrease in negative appraisal of illness while the usual care caregivers did not. However, this difference was not sustained at six months. No changes in quality-of-life measures were found over time between usual care and FOCUS group participants (patients and caregivers).
The FOCUS program assisted patients with recurrent breast cancer to report less hopelessness following the initial intervention, and both FOCUS patients and their caregivers reported less negative appraisal of illness; however, intervention effects were not apparent over time. The intervention did not show an effect on caregiver quality-of-life measures.
Study findings suggest that the intervention provided had a short-term effect on improving patient sense of hopelessness. Findings do not support effectiveness of this approach on caregiver quality of life.