Trial results for a study on symptom management for young adult cancer survivors were posted on ClinicalTrials.gov on 2025-06-29, with 65 participants enrolled.
Background
Symptom interference is a common challenge for survivors of young adult cancer, defined as individuals aged 18-39 at diagnosis. These symptoms can significantly impact their ability to achieve normative life goals such as education, career development, independence, and social relationships, and may also affect adherence to recommended follow-up care. While young adult survivors have identified assistance with symptom management as an important and unmet healthcare need, skill-based symptom management interventions have traditionally been tested among older cancer survivors and have not specifically addressed the unique developmental needs of those diagnosed as young adults.
Trial design
This completed study, designated as Phase NA, enrolled 65 participants to investigate conditions including Cancer, Young Adult, Pain, Psychological Distress, and Fatigue. The trial compared a Behavioral Symptom Management intervention for Young Adult Cancer Survivors against a Waitlist Control group. The study aimed to assess various outcomes related to intervention satisfaction and acceptability.
Key results
The trial reported several key measurements and analyses:
- Intervention Satisfaction: Satisfaction With Therapy and Therapist Scale-Revised (STTS-R):
- For the Behavioral Symptom Management group, mean scores were 26.71 (Standard Deviation 3.52), 28.86 (Standard Deviation 1.86), and 1.75 (Standard Deviation 0.52) on a scale.
- For the Waitlist Control group, mean scores were 27.33 (Standard Deviation 3.14), 27.75 (Standard Deviation 3.27), and 1.58 (Standard Deviation 0.65) on a scale.
- Number of Participants Who Completed Open-Ended Questions About the Program:
- 28 participants in the Behavioral Symptom Management group completed these questions.
- 24 participants in the Waitlist Control group completed these questions.
- Percentage of Sessions Attended by Each Participant:
- The Behavioral Symptom Management group had a mean attendance of 91.96% (Standard Deviation 23.87%).
- The Waitlist Control group had a mean attendance of 94.27% (Standard Deviation 18.42%).
- Treatment Acceptability Questionnaire:
- The Behavioral Symptom Management group had a mean score of 6.54 (Standard Deviation 0.41) on a scale.
- The Waitlist Control group had a mean score of 6.36 (Standard Deviation 0.83) on a scale.
Key analyses comparing outcomes between the groups included:
- For Satisfaction with Therapy (ST), a t-test (2 sided) yielded a p-value of 0.519.
- For Satisfaction with Therapist (SWT), a t-test (2 sided) yielded a p-value of 0.15.
- For Global Improvement (Item 13), a t-test (2 sided) yielded a p-value of 0.309.
- Another t-test (2 sided) yielded a p-value of 0.696.
- A further t-test (2 sided) yielded a p-value of 0.35.
- A Fisher Exact test yielded a p-value of 0.274 for outcomes compared at post-intervention visit: 3-month (A2) for intervention participants, 9-month (A4) for waitlist control participants.
What this means
The posted trial results indicate that the behavioral symptom management intervention for young adult cancer survivors demonstrated similar levels of participant satisfaction and treatment acceptability compared to a waitlist control group. The statistical analyses, with p-values consistently above 0.05, suggest no statistically significant differences between the groups for the measured satisfaction and acceptability outcomes. While the intervention appears to be well-attended and participants completed open-ended questions, these findings highlight the need for further research to establish the efficacy of such interventions in this specific population.
Source
The information regarding these trial results was obtained from ClinicalTrials.gov, a public database of clinical studies. The results for the study NCT04035447, titled "Symptom Management for YA Cancer Survivors", were posted on 2025-06-29 on clinicaltrials.gov.