Perceived barriers to and facilitators of being physically active during adjuvant cancer treatment
The aim was to describe cancer patients' perceived barriers and facilitators of physical activity during adjuvant cancer treatment.Semi-structured focus group interviews were conducted with patients with breast cancer (n=9) and colorectal cancer (n=1) and prostate cancer (n=8) undergoing adjuvant cancer treatment. To capture perceived barriers and facilitators before starting treatment, individual interviews with women with breast cancer (n=5) were also conducted. 23 patients in total, were interviewed, and the transcribed interviews were analysed with qualitative content analysis.Three categories emerged: "Physical and emotional barriers"-addresses experiences of side-effects, co-morbid co…
Early rehabilitation of cancer patients—An individual randomized stepped‐care stress‐management intervention
Objective To evaluate the effects of an individual stepped-care stress-management intervention for cancer patients on cancer-related stress reactions (intrusion/avoidance), and secondarily on psychological distress (anxiety/depression) and emotional reactivity (impatience/hostility). Methods Consecutively 291 cancer patients were included in a randomized controlled intervention study. Patients randomized to the intervention who did not report clinically significant stress levels (n = 72) after the first counseling session participated in only one counseling session and a follow-up (Step 1). The remaining patients (n = 66) received an additional three to eight sessions, depending on individu…
Early rehabilitation of cancer patients - a randomized controlled intervention study.
Published version of an article in the journal: BMC Cancer. Also available from the publisher at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2407-13-9 Open access Background: Faced with a life-threatening illness, such as cancer, many patients develop stress symptoms, i.e. avoidance behaviour, intrusive thoughts and worry. Stress management interventions have proven to be effective; however, they are mostly performed in group settings and it is commonly breast cancer patients who are studied. We hereby present the design of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of an individual stress-management intervention with a stepped-care approach in several cance…