Women diagnosed with breast cancer (BC) at or before the age of 50 experience more distress and poorer quality of life than women diagnosed later in life. Although adequate spousal support is a protective factor for women with BC, spouses are often unprepared to handle the myriad practical and emotional demands posed by the illness. Furthermore, despite the growing number of recommendations for couple interventions in relation to BC, traditional counselling approaches may fail to meet the needs of young couples who have unique concerns and tight constraints on their time. The proposed project addresses the void in the psycho-social support available to young couples via an innovative, online psychoeducational intervention tailored specifically to their needs.
Couplelinks.ca is a custom-designed website offering a professionally facilitated, couple-centred intervention that entails informational, experiential, and interactive components. Six Dyadic Learning Modules (DLM) form the core of the program and are undertaken on a weekly basis. A funded pilot study examining the feasibility and benefit of Couplelinks.ca utilized a non-randomized, pre-post test design to assess the process and outcomes of the intervention. Qualitative feedback also informed the evaluation. Preliminary findings were promising and provided justification for further evaluation of the program's effectiveness. The current study is the next logical step: a larger-scale Phase III study to determine whether this BC-specific, relationship-enhancement program leads to improved relationship and psychological outcomes for young couples affected by BC. It is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing level of distress and dyadic adjustment in couples who have participated in the Couplelinks.ca educational program to those who have not participated and were instead put on a wait-list for participation.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
260
Participation in the Couplelinks.ca program, an online intervention.
British Columbia Cancer Agency Research Centre
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
RECRUITINGCancerCare Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
RECRUITINGQueen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
RECRUITINGYork University
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
RECRUITINGSunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
RECRUITINGRevised Dyadic Adjustment Survey RDAS
The Revised Dyadic Adjustment Survey (RDAS) is a brief version of the 33 question Dyadic Adjustment Survey that assesses relationship adjustment.
Time frame: T0= 0 weeks, T1= 8 weeks, T3= 3 months
Dyadic Coping
Dyadic Coping assesses the degree to which partners feel that their coping efforts are reciprocal
Time frame: T0= 0 weeks, T1= 8 weeks, T3= 3 months
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