Development and pilot testing of a psychoeducational intervention for oral cancer patients.
OBJECTIVE
Oral cancer elicits considerable distress in both the pre and post-treatment periods. This paper details the development, validation and pilot-testing of a psychoeducational intervention for oral cancer patients.


METHODS
An educational booklet covering information about oral cancer and its treatment and effective coping strategies was developed by a multi-disciplinary team. It was evaluated by patient focus groups and content/educational experts, delivered to subjects in pre and post-operative presentations by a health educator, and pilot-tested in a randomized controlled trial versus standard care.


RESULTS
Pilot data from 19 subjects (10 psychoeducation, nine standard care) indicates that the intervention is feasible and highly acceptable. At follow-up the intervention group showed a gain in knowledge, less body image disturbance, lower anxiety and a trend toward higher wellbeing.


CONCLUSIONS
This program, which is currently being evaluated in a larger RCT with extended follow-up, should prove useful in reducing the psychosocial burden of oral cancer and its treatment.
Katz
Mark R
MR
Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Department of Psychiatry, University Health Network--Toronto General Hospital/Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. mark.katz@uhn.on.ca
Irish
Jonathan C
JC
Devins
Gerald M
GM
D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000534:rehabilitation / Q000601:surgery; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010348:Patient Care Team; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011182:Postoperative Care; D011300:Preoperative Care; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires