Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40422525›Full record

Trial reportCurrent oncology (Toronto, Ont.)2025

Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of iCanWork: Theory-Guided Return-to-Work Intervention for Individuals Touched by Cancer.

Christine Maheu, Maureen Parkinson, Kyla Johnson, Wing Lam Tock, Naomi Dolgoy, Simon-Pierre Dupuis, Mina Singh

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
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

7 authors.

Christine MaheuIngram School of Nursing, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2M7, Canada.ORCID 0000-0001-8704-8207
Maureen ParkinsonVocational Rehabilitation Program, Patient & Family Counselling Services, BC Cancer, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4E6, Canada.
Kyla JohnsonIndependent Researcher, Montréal, QC H3T 1E2, Canada.
Wing Lam TockCentre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-1614-3770
Naomi DolgoyDepartment of Occupational Therapy, University of Alberta, Alberta, AB T6G 2G4, Canada.
Simon-Pierre DupuisCancer and Work, Montréal, QC H3A 2M7, Canada.
Mina SinghSchool of Nursing, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundRecent systematic reviews report a limited number of return-to-work (RTW) interventions for individuals touched by cancer (ITBC), with many falling short in effectiveness and lacking an integrated work-health approach. In response, iCanWork-a theoretically informed, multidisciplinary RTW intervention integrating vocational rehabilitation (VR) and occupational therapy (OT)-was conceptualized and developed to address the gap identified in recent reviews for robust, work-health-focused RTW interventions.

methodsA pilot randomized controlled trial was conducted to explore the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary work-related outcomes of the iCanWork intervention among 23 ITBC participants randomized to either the intervention or control group. Feasibility was assessed through recruitment, retention, and engagement benchmarks; acceptability was measured using a participant satisfaction survey. Preliminary work-health-related outcomes included RTW status, work ability index (WAI) scores, and health-related quality of life (QoL) domains.

resultsFeasibility benchmarks were achieved, with 92% recruitment, 83% retention, and 100% completing at least one VR session. Adherence to the session delivery benchmarks was met by 75% of participants before RTW and 41.7% after RTW. Participants rated the intervention highly for its tailored and supportive approach. Compared to the control group, the iCanWork group showed modest improvements in RTW status, WAI scores (mean change: +2.54), and QoL domains, including fatigue, social roles, and pain interference. Given the small sample size, these exploratory findings should be interpreted as preliminary signals to inform outcome selection for a future trial.

conclusionsiCanWork is a feasible and acceptable RTW intervention for ITBC with early indications of benefit. These findings inform the design and outcome selection for a future, larger trial aimed at evaluating the intervention's potential to improve RTW outcomes for ITBC.

Indexed as

NeoplasmsOccupational TherapyRehabilitation, VocationalReturn to WorkAdultFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPilot ProjectsQuality of Lifecancer survivorshipfeasibility trialindividuals touched by cancer (ITBC)occupational therapy (OT)return to work (RTW)vocational rehabilitation (VR)work ability index (WAI)

Identifiers

PMID40422525
PMCPMC12110094

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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.