A pilot trial of a stress management intervention for primary caregivers of children newly diagnosed with cancer: preliminary evidence that perceived social support moderates the psychosocial benefit of intervention

Abstract

Objectives: (1) To examine the acceptability and feasibility of a stress management intervention for caregivers of children recently diagnosed with cancer. (2) To explore whether caregivers with lower baseline perceived social support derive greater benefit from the intervention than those with higher perceived support.

Methods: 45 primary caregivers were randomly assigned to intervention or standard care. Of these, 37 completed measures of social support, depression, anxiety, and perceived stress at both pre-intervention (T1; mean = 24 days post-diagnosis) and post-intervention time points (T2; mean = 165 days post-diagnosis).

Results: Enrollment, retention, and satisfaction data support feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. There was no overall significant impact of participation in the intervention on levels of distress at T2. However, T1 social support moderated intervention response, with caregivers who perceived lower T1 support showing greater psychological benefit from the intervention.

Conclusions: Primary caregivers with lower levels of perceived social support may benefit from preemptive stress management intervention.

Figure 1.

Consort diagram.

Figure 2.

Change in raw scores on measures of distress from Time 1 to Time 2 among primary caregivers assigned to the “Connection to Coping” intervention or to a treatment as usual control condition. Results are presented separately for individuals who fell above (high social support; N = 10 intervention and 8 control participants) or below (low social support; N = 13 intervention and 6 control participants) the median of 94 on the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List Measure administered at Time 1.