Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30549145›Full record

Trial reportPsycho-oncology2019

Helping Her Heal: Randomized clinical trial to enhance dyadic outcomes in couples.

Frances Marcus Lewis, Kristin A Griffith, Zainab Alzawad, Patricia L Dawson, Ellen H Zahlis, Mary Ellen Shands

Open access · greenAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Psycho-oncology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
4.2field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Components of family support in women with breast cancer: a systematic review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025
    Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Spouse caregivers' attributed gains from a skill-based counseling program.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2021
    Article
  11. Self-efficacy in caregivers of adults diagnosed with cancer: An integrative review.European journal of oncology nursing : the official journal of European Oncology Nursing Society · 2021
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Frances Marcus LewisSchool of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-8288-4983
Kristin A GriffithSchool of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-6078-0622
Zainab AlzawadSchool of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Patricia L DawsonSchool of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Ellen H ZahlisSchool of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Mary Ellen ShandsSchool of Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
University of Washington · US

Funding

Psychoeducation for Spouses of Women with Breast CancerR01CA114561 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON · PI LEWIS, FRANCES MARCUS · 2009 to 2012
$2.3M
NCI NIH HHS R01 CA114561NCI NIH HHS R01-CA-114-561
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe objective of this study was to test the short-term efficacy of a brief, fully manualized marital communication and interpersonal support intervention for couples facing recently diagnosed breast cancer.

methodsA total of 322 women diagnosed within 6 months with stages 0 to III breast cancer and their 322 spouse caregivers were enrolled. Spouses in the experimental group received five 30- to 60-minute intervention sessions at 2-week intervals by master's-prepared patient educators; controls received the booklet, "What's Happening to the Woman I Love?" Outcomes were assessed at 3, 6, and 9 months using the linear mixed models within an intent-to-treat analysis.

resultsCompared with controls, at 3 months, spouse caregivers significantly improved on standardized measures of depressed mood, anxiety, cancer-related marital communication, interpersonal support, and self-care. All differences except depressed mood and anxiety were sustained at 9 months. Wives significantly improved at 3 months on marital communication and positive appraisal of spouses' interpersonal support; gains remained significant at 9 months. Compared with controls on chemotherapy, wives in the experimental group additionally improved on depressed mood and tended to improve on anxiety.

conclusionsA brief, fully manualized intervention delivered directly to spouse caregivers early in the course of their wives' medical treatment improves caregivers' self-care and behavioral-emotional adjustment and wives' positive view of their spouses' support and communication. The brevity and manualized structure of the intervention argue strongly for its scalability, use in cost-sensitive settings, and its potential dissemination through e-health channels.

Indexed as

Self CareSelf EfficacySocial SupportAdultAgedAnxietyBreast NeoplasmsCaregiversDepressionFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPsychotherapySpousesTreatment Outcomecancercaregivermarital communicationoncologyrandomized clinical trialself-careself-efficacyskill trainingspousesupport

Identifiers

PMID30549145
PMCPMC6483880
OpenAlexW2904652678

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.