Quantifying the recruitment challenges with couple-based interventions for cancer: applications to early-stage breast cancer.
Published
Journal Article
OBJECTIVE: Despite mounting evidence supporting the use of psychosocial interventions to promote adaptation to cancer, enrolling participants into these interventions is challenging. This is particularly salient for couple-based interventions, and newer, more targeted recruitment strategies to increase enrollment are needed. However, there have been few published empirical studies focused specifically on recruitment-related variables associated with enrollment into these types of interventions. To better understand how to encourage participation in couple-based psychosocial interventions for cancer, we examined facilitating and impeding factors to enrollment into a couple-based intervention for women with early-stage breast cancer. METHOD: In this sample of 99 women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, patient demographic variables and method of approaching eligible patients were examined as predictors of enrollment into a randomized controlled trial comparing couple-based relationship enhancement with treatment as usual. RESULTS: Results indicated that women were more likely to enroll if they were contacted at home or at a follow-up medical appointment rather than when first diagnosed at a busy multidisciplinary clinic; they were also more likely to enroll the closer they lived to the research facility. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to decreasing participant burden, timing and setting of recruitment efforts may have important implications for enhancing participation rates in couple-based intervention studies for cancer.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Fredman, SJ; Baucom, DH; Gremore, TM; Castellani, AM; Kallman, TA; Porter, LS; Kirby, JS; Dees, EC; Klauber-Demore, N; Peppercorn, J; Carey, LA
Published Date
- June 2009
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 18 / 6
Start / End Page
- 667 - 673
PubMed ID
- 19061201
Pubmed Central ID
- 19061201
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1099-1611
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1002/pon.1477
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- England