Dyadic psychosocial interventions for patients with cancer and their caregivers: an update

Abstract

Purpose of reviewCancer causes significant impacts on patients and their caregivers. Cancer is also associated with multiple physical and emotional challenges for the patient-caregiver dyad. This patient-caregiver dyad should be considered as a unit of care by healthcare providers and supported through dedicated psychological interventions.Recent findingsTwelve studies that tested dyadic interventions aiming to support patient-caregiver dyads were identified from the period April 2020 to December 2021. Studies were predominantly randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and single-arm pilot studies. Half of the interventions were online. Interventions were mostly focused on dyadic adjustment and appeared to be acceptable, feasible and globally effective. However, effects were evident predominantly on individual rather than dyadic outcomes. The interventions targeted either individual psychological outcomes, such as depression and anxiety, and are reported to be effective or various individual outcomes and also appeared to be effective. However, there was a large heterogeneity in quality and sample sizes across all intervention types.SummaryDyadic psychological interventions may be an effective support for patient-caregiver dyads dealing with multiple physical and emotional challenges. Online interventions and the variability of intervention types may respond to dyads specific needs, but though need to be rigorously evaluated through powered RCTs.

Effectiveness of dyadic interventions among cancer dyads: An overview of systematic reviews and meta‐analyses

“…In these interventions, a cancer dyad, consisting of both the cancer patient and their caregiver, are engaged as active participants. Findings suggested that the use of a dyadic approach yields positive outcomes in enhancing cancer dyads' general state of wellness, particularly with regard to the alleviation of depressive and anxious symptoms and the enhancement of quality of life (Otto et al., 2022; Tiete & Porter, 2022).…”