Lung Cancer Clinical Trial

Early Integrated Telehealth Versus In-Person Palliative Care for Patients With Lung Cancer

Summary

This research study is evaluating ways to provide palliative care to patients who have recently been diagnosed with lung cancer and their families.

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Full Description

Patients with serious cancers, like advanced lung cancer, often experience physical symptoms, such as pain or shortness of breath. In addition, both patients and their loved ones (family and friends) often feel worried or sad about the cancer diagnosis.

Research has shown that early involvement of a team of clinicians that specialize in lessening (or "palliating") many of these distressing physical and emotional symptoms and in helping patients and their families cope with a serious illness improves patients' and their loved ones' experience with their cancer. This team is called "palliative care," and consists of physicians and advanced practice nurses (or "nurse practitioners") who work closely and collaboratively with the oncology team to care for the participant and the participant's loved ones. Research shows that when the palliative care team works closely with the oncology team to care for patients with advanced cancer, they have better symptom control, quality of life, and mood, and their loved ones feel less distressed. the investigators call this model of care, "early integrated palliative care."

While the investigators know that having palliative care clinicians work closely with the oncology team is helpful for patients and their loved ones, many patients do not have access to these specialists because hospitals and cancer clinics lack enough staff and because some patients and family members live in distant regions that make attending clinic visits difficult and expensive. One way to overcome these barriers is to have patients meet with palliative care clinicians using secure video-conferencing technology.

The purpose of this study is to determine if meeting with a palliative care clinician through video-conferencing is just as beneficial for patients and their families as meeting with a palliative care clinician in person. Specifically, this study will compare these two different strategies for meeting with the palliative care clinician. The first strategy is to schedule the participant to meet with the palliative care clinician regularly each month in person at the clinic. The investigators call this strategy "In-person palliative care."

The second strategy is to schedule the participant to meet with the palliative care clinician regularly each month using secure video-conferencing, such as through a smart phone or tablet computer. If the participant do not have this form of technology, the investigators will provide it for the participant. The investigators call this strategy "telehealth palliative care." The primary goals of this study are to learn if telehealth palliative care is just as effective as in-person palliative care for improving quality of life, mood symptoms, and satisfaction with care for patients with advanced lung cancer and their families.

View Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

Patient Eligibility Criteria

Diagnosed with advanced non-small cell lung cancer being treated with non-curative intent, and informed of advanced disease within the prior twelve weeks
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status from 0 (asymptomatic) to 3 (symptomatic and in bed >50% of the day)
The ability to read and respond to questions in English or Spanish
Receiving primary cancer care at one of the participating sites
Age > or = 18 years
Lives in a state where their institutions' palliative care clinicians are licensed to practice

Caregiver Eligibility Criteria

Relative or friend who is identified by the patient participant and lives with the patient or has contact with them at least twice per week.
The ability to read and respond to questions in English or Spanish
Age > or = 18 years

Exclusion Criteria:

Patient Exclusion Criteria

Already receiving outpatient PC or hospice services
Cognitive or psychiatric conditions as determined by the treating oncologist to prohibit study consent or participation
Caregiver Exclusion Criteria --Cognitive or psychiatric conditions as determined by the treating oncologist to prohibit study consent or participation

Study is for people with:

Lung Cancer

Estimated Enrollment:

1250

Study ID:

NCT03375489

Recruitment Status:

Active, not recruiting

Sponsor:

Massachusetts General Hospital

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There are 23 Locations for this study

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University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham Alabama, 35294, United States
City of Hope
Los Angeles California, 91010, United States
University of California - San Francisco
San Francisco California, 94121, United States
University of Colorado
Aurora Colorado, 80045, United States
Emory University
Atlanta Georgia, 30322, United States
Northwestern University School of Medicine
Chicago Illinois, 60611, United States
Rush University Medical Center
Chicago Illinois, 60612, United States
University of Kansas Medical Center
Westwood Kansas, 66205, United States
Johns Hopkins Medicine
Baltimore Maryland, 21201, United States
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston Massachusetts, 02114, United States
Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Boston Massachusetts, 02215, United States
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor Michigan, 48109, United States
Mayo Clinic in Rochester
Rochester Minnesota, 55905, United States
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health
Lebanon New Hampshire, 03756, United States
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill North Carolina, 27514, United States
Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem North Carolina, 27157, United States
Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland Ohio, 44195, United States
Fox Chase Cancer Center
Philadelphia Pennsylvania, 19111, United States
Vanderbilt University
Nashville Tennessee, 37204, United States
University of Texas at Austin
Austin Texas, 78712, United States
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas Texas, 75390, United States
University of Virginia
Charlottesville Virginia, 22908, United States
University of Wisconsin
Madison Wisconsin, 53792, United States

How clear is this clinincal trial information?

Study is for people with:

Lung Cancer

Estimated Enrollment:

1250

Study ID:

NCT03375489

Recruitment Status:

Active, not recruiting

Sponsor:


Massachusetts General Hospital

How clear is this clinincal trial information?

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