Victoria M. White, Ph.D., from the University of Melbourne in Australia, and colleagues examined the effectiveness of an intervention involving volunteers who contacted BRCA1/2-positive women multiple times over a four-month period to provide informational, emotional, and practical support. Participants who completed a baseline questionnaire and reported interest in talking to other mutation carriers were assigned to the usual-care group (UCG; 102 participants) or the intervention group (IG; 105 participants).
The researchers observed a greater decrease in breast cancer distress scores in the IG than the UCG at the end of the intervention (mean difference, −5.96; P = 0.002) and two months later (mean difference, −3.94; P = 0.04). Unmet information needs decreased more in the IG versus the UCG (P < 0.01), with unmet needs lower in the IG after the intervention. In the IG versus the UCG there was a greater decrease in Cognitive Appraisals About Genetic Testing stress subscale scores (P = 0.02), with significantly lower scores in the IG versus the UCG after the intervention (P < 0.01).
"The intervention is effective in reducing distress and unmet information needs for this group of women," the authors write.
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