Effectiveness of technology‐based psychosocial interventions for child, adolescents and young adults undergoing cancer treatment: A meta‐analysis of randomised controlled trials

Abstract

Background Cancer can have various psychosocial effects on children and young adults. Technology‐based psychosocial interventions are increasingly popular in paediatric oncology for psychosocial health. Objective The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of technology‐based psychosocial interventions applied to children, adolescent and young adults undergoing cancer treatment. Methods Eight electronic databases including PubMed, Cochrane Library (including Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials [CENTRAL]), CINAHL Plus with Full Text, PsycINFO, MEDLINE, ProQuest, Science Direct and Scopus were searched to identify eligible randomised controlled trials from 1 January 2010 up to 9 April 2021. Search results were limited to ‘children, adolescent and young adults’ 6–24 years undergoing cancer treatment. Randomised controlled studies in which technology‐based psychosocial interventions were applied were examined. Of 4,927 articles, 12 articles met the inclusion criteria. Hedges' g effect size was computed for each study. Effect sizes and moderator variables were tested using random‐effects models. This study is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42020177787. Results The outcomes were anger, anxiety, coping, depression, distress, quality of life and resilience. Compared with standard care, technology‐based psychosocial interventions had a large effect and significantly on anger (g = −1.327, 95% CI: [−2.43, 0.22], anxiety (g = −0.89, 95%CI: [−1.34, −0.18], and depression (g = −1.05, 95% CI: [−1.65,−0.46]. Also, it was found that the duration of interventions had a significant moderator and effect size of the distress and resilience outcomes increased as the duration increased. Conclusion This meta‐analysis demonstrated that technology‐based psychosocial interventions served as an effective intervention as it appears to have implications reducing anger, anxiety and depression in paediatric oncology. Nevertheless, randomised controlled studies with larger samples still needed to establish evidence‐based psycho‐oncological interventions for paediatric oncology. Future research should develop interventions more graduated by duration.

The effect of technology-based interventions on child and parent outcomes in pediatric oncology: A systemic review of experimental evidence

“… 15 In the meta-analysis of Sari Ozturk and Toruner, technology-based psychosocial interventions are effective in reducing anger, anxiety, and depression in children with cancer. 34 Also, in the meta-analysis of Contreras et al., technology-based parenting programs have positive effects on emotional well-being of parents of children with cancer. 31 In this context, technology-based interventions are considered to be an effective approach to support children with cancer and their parents.…”

Effectiveness of psychosocial interventions on health outcomes of children with cancer: A systematic review of randomised controlled trials

“…To our knowledge, our systematic review is one among several reviews of interventional studies (Coughtrey et al, 2018;Ozturk & Toruner, 2022;Pai et al, 2006;Ramsey et al, 2020;Seitz et al, 2009;Zhang et al, 2021) conducted to evaluate the effects of psychosocial interventions on the psychological, physical, and social outcomes of children with cancer. Nevertheless, most of the previous reviews included studies that evaluated both children and young adult participants (Coughtrey et al, 2018;Ozturk & Toruner, 2022;Ramsey et al, 2020;Seitz et al, 2009;Zhang et al, 2021), and/or any types of interventional studies (Ramsey et al, 2020;Seitz et al, 2009;Zhang et al, 2021). However, as children are physiologically and developmentally different from adults, the effects of psychosocial interven- In our review, the majority of included trials reported improvements in health outcomes of the experimental groups compared to control groups and were consistent with previous reviews (Coughtrey et al, 2018;Ramsey et al, 2020;Zhang et al, 2021).…”

“…To our knowledge, our systematic review is one among several reviews of interventional studies (Coughtrey et al, 2018; Ozturk & Toruner, 2022; Pai et al, 2006; Ramsey et al, 2020; Seitz et al, 2009; Zhang et al, 2021) conducted to evaluate the effects of psychosocial interventions on the psychological, physical, and social outcomes of children with cancer. Nevertheless, most of the previous reviews included studies that evaluated both children and young adult participants (Coughtrey et al, 2018; Ozturk & Toruner, 2022; Ramsey et al, 2020; Seitz et al, 2009; Zhang et al, 2021), and/or any types of interventional studies (Ramsey et al, 2020; Seitz et al, 2009; Zhang et al, 2021).…”

“…However, most of the previous reviews included children and young adult participants (Coughtrey et al, 2018; Ozturk & Toruner, 2022; Pai et al, 2006; Ramsey et al, 2020; Seitz et al, 2009; Zhang et al, 2021). Nevertheless, because children are developmentally different from adults, the result might not be considered specifically conclusive for children.…”

“…A third review included children and young adult participants and reported improved psychological and physical symptoms in the experimental group (Coughtrey et al, 2018). Recently published systematic reviews included studies that evaluate technology‐based psychological interventions for children and young adults with cancer and reported positive implications of the interventions to improve psychological and health‐related outcomes (Ozturk & Toruner, 2022; Ramsey et al, 2020).…”