Abstract:ObjectiveThe purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the experiences of pain acceptance in Chinese cancer patients with chronic pain.MethodsTwelve hospitalized cancer patients with chronic pain participated in this qualitative descriptive study from August to November 2017. In-person semi-structured interviews were conducted, recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step method.ResultsThe following four main themes and 15 subthemes emerged. Theme 1 (adaptation): pain is overwhelming… Show more
“…Chemotherapy often causes undesirable side effects in women with breast cancer, including fatigue, pain, sweating, swollen hands, and anxiety [ 1 , 2 ]. In China, access to adequate and continuous cancer care is challenging for women with breast cancer due to the increasing incidence of this type of cancer, shortage of specialized oncology health care professionals, and rising medical cost [ 3 , 4 ].…”
Background
Many app-based interventions targeting women with breast cancer have been developed and tested for effectiveness. However, information regarding the evaluation of the usage of these interventions is scarce. A better understanding of usage data is important to determine how women use apps and how these interventions affect health outcomes.
Objective
This study aimed to examine the usage duration and login frequency of an app-based intervention, the Breast Cancer e-Support (BCS) program, and to investigate the association between usage data and participants’ demographic and medical characteristics.
Methods
This study is a secondary data analysis of a randomized controlled trial assessing the effectiveness of the BCS program. The BCS program contains four modules: Learning Forum, Discussion Forum, Ask-the-Expert Forum, and Your Story Forum. A total of 57 women in the intervention group accessed the BCS program during their 12-week chemotherapy. The app’s background system tracked the usage duration and login frequency for each forum and the entire BCS program.
Results
The total usage duration per participant ranged from 0 to 9371 minutes, and the login frequency per participant ranged from 0 to 774 times. The Discussion Forum and the Learning Forum were the most frequently used modules. The general linear model showed that age, education, family monthly income, and employment were associated with BCS usage duration and/or login frequency. Age (F1,45=10.09, P=.003, B=115.34, 95% CI 42.22-188.47) and education level (F1,45=7.22, P=.01, B=1949.63, 95% CI 487.76-3411.50) were positively associated with the usage duration of the entire BCS program. Family monthly income was positively associated with the usage duration of the Learning Forum (F1,45=11.85, P=.001, B=1488.55, 95% CI 617.58-2359.51) and the login frequency of the entire BCS program (F1,45=4.47, P=.04, B=113.68, 95% CI 5.33-222.03). Employment was negatively associated with the usage duration of the Ask-the-expert Forum (F1,45=4.50, P=.04, B=–971.87, 95% CI –1894.66 to –49.07) and the Your Story Forum (F1,45=5.36, P=.03, B=–640.71, 95% CI –1198.30 to –83.11) and positively associated with the login frequency of the entire BCS program (F1,45=10.86, P=.002, B=192.88, 95% CI 75.01-310.74). No statistical differences were found between BCS usage data and cancer stage, BMI, comorbidity, types of surgery, or cycles of chemotherapy.
Conclusions
Overall, this study found considerable variability in the usage of app-based interventions. When health care professionals incorporate app-based interventions into their routine care for women with breast cancer, the learning and discussion functions of apps should be strengthened to promote engagement. Additionally, characteristics of women with breast cancer, such as age, level of education, income, and employment status, should be taken in consideration to develop tailored apps that address their particular needs and therefore improve their engagement with the app.
Trial Registration
Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12616000639426; http://www.ANZCTR.org.au/ACTRN12616000639426.aspx
“…Chemotherapy often causes undesirable side effects in women with breast cancer, including fatigue, pain, sweating, swollen hands, and anxiety [ 1 , 2 ]. In China, access to adequate and continuous cancer care is challenging for women with breast cancer due to the increasing incidence of this type of cancer, shortage of specialized oncology health care professionals, and rising medical cost [ 3 , 4 ].…”
Background
Many app-based interventions targeting women with breast cancer have been developed and tested for effectiveness. However, information regarding the evaluation of the usage of these interventions is scarce. A better understanding of usage data is important to determine how women use apps and how these interventions affect health outcomes.
Objective
This study aimed to examine the usage duration and login frequency of an app-based intervention, the Breast Cancer e-Support (BCS) program, and to investigate the association between usage data and participants’ demographic and medical characteristics.
Methods
This study is a secondary data analysis of a randomized controlled trial assessing the effectiveness of the BCS program. The BCS program contains four modules: Learning Forum, Discussion Forum, Ask-the-Expert Forum, and Your Story Forum. A total of 57 women in the intervention group accessed the BCS program during their 12-week chemotherapy. The app’s background system tracked the usage duration and login frequency for each forum and the entire BCS program.
Results
The total usage duration per participant ranged from 0 to 9371 minutes, and the login frequency per participant ranged from 0 to 774 times. The Discussion Forum and the Learning Forum were the most frequently used modules. The general linear model showed that age, education, family monthly income, and employment were associated with BCS usage duration and/or login frequency. Age (F1,45=10.09, P=.003, B=115.34, 95% CI 42.22-188.47) and education level (F1,45=7.22, P=.01, B=1949.63, 95% CI 487.76-3411.50) were positively associated with the usage duration of the entire BCS program. Family monthly income was positively associated with the usage duration of the Learning Forum (F1,45=11.85, P=.001, B=1488.55, 95% CI 617.58-2359.51) and the login frequency of the entire BCS program (F1,45=4.47, P=.04, B=113.68, 95% CI 5.33-222.03). Employment was negatively associated with the usage duration of the Ask-the-expert Forum (F1,45=4.50, P=.04, B=–971.87, 95% CI –1894.66 to –49.07) and the Your Story Forum (F1,45=5.36, P=.03, B=–640.71, 95% CI –1198.30 to –83.11) and positively associated with the login frequency of the entire BCS program (F1,45=10.86, P=.002, B=192.88, 95% CI 75.01-310.74). No statistical differences were found between BCS usage data and cancer stage, BMI, comorbidity, types of surgery, or cycles of chemotherapy.
Conclusions
Overall, this study found considerable variability in the usage of app-based interventions. When health care professionals incorporate app-based interventions into their routine care for women with breast cancer, the learning and discussion functions of apps should be strengthened to promote engagement. Additionally, characteristics of women with breast cancer, such as age, level of education, income, and employment status, should be taken in consideration to develop tailored apps that address their particular needs and therefore improve their engagement with the app.
Trial Registration
Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12616000639426; http://www.ANZCTR.org.au/ACTRN12616000639426.aspx
“…Research results about chronic pain, show that ACT increases pain acceptance and decreases pain perception, and pain severity [ 20 , 25 , 26 ]. According to Xianghua Xu's (2019) study on pain acceptance in cancer patients with chronic pain, acceptance-based CBT could increase tolerance and reduce pain perception [ 27 ].…”
Introduction: Neuropathic pain is a complex phenomenon in patients with diabetes. These patients have many problems, such as psychological problems, high-level pain perception, and pain acceptance. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy on pain acceptance and pain perception in patients with painful diabetic neuropathy. Methods: This study was performed according to the clinical trial method. The sample size was 50 participants. In this study, participants were divided into interventional and control groups. According to the diagnosis of neurologists, all participants received conventional medications to manage neuropathic pain. The intervention group received acceptance and commitment therapy for eight sessions. The results in the three phases of pre-test, post-test, and follow-up were evaluated. After completing the study, to comply with ethical standards, the control group received psycho-education. The tools used were the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) and the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (CPAQ). Statistical analysis includes mean, standard deviation, and repeated-measures (ANOVA) conducted by SPSS software version 22. Results: The results demonstrated that in the post-test and follow-up phases, acceptance and commitment therapy could improve pain acceptance and reduce pain perception in the intervention group compared to the control group (P \ 0.01). Conclusion: The results indicated that acceptance and commitment therapy could be used as a psychological intervention besides pharmacotherapy to improve pain acceptance and reduce pain perception in patients with painful diabetic neuropathy. Clinical Trail Registration: This study was registered at the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT20180205038630N4).
“…Pain clearly influenced mood, lead to apathy and anger, and made life miserable. Liu et al 59 described participants with cancer‐related pain as, “They expressed sorrow over their pain and articulated that their pain episodes made them feel sad and in despair most days,” while a participant with cancer pain in Xu et al 71 stated “When it hurts, it's hard not to get angry. I can't control my temper and I'm getting more impatient than before.” There was also a social stigma associated with pain and pain‐related conditions.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…It hurts so much that no self‐suggestions are helpful. I've collapsed…the pain is killing me, I want to give up… 71 Now, the pain restricts me to bed. I hope to die in a rapid way … 56 In the first few years, I really want to jump down the building, it was very miserable 68 …”
Chronic pain is one of the most prevalent health conditions worldwide, with estimates of 15%-34% reported across the U.S., U.K., Europe, and Australasia. [1][2][3][4] There are fewer studies documenting the prevalence of chronic pain in Eastern countries, but estimates similar to Western countries are reported. 5,6 Pain is traditionally viewed as a multidimensional experience, impacting physical, psychological, economical, and social aspects of health and wellbeing. It is therefore not surprising that chronic non-cancer pain is thought to be best managed using a multidisciplinary approach. Reviews indicate that such approaches are effective overall [7][8][9] ; however, a lack of equity in access to and outcomes from pain management programs has been documented. For example, it has been reported that minority ethnicities are underrepresented at such services, 10,11 have a greater impact of
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
