A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Social Network Intervention
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: SONATA.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Advanced Cancer, Older Adults (65 Years and Older), Social Networks. Basic parameters: from 65 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- United States
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Social Network Intervention for Older Patients With Cancer
Overview
This is a pilot randomized controlled trial to assess the feasibility, acceptability, appropriateness, and structure of the SONATA intervention. In addition, it will assess the preliminary efficacy of SONATA compared to enhanced usual care among 70 older adults with advanced cancer.
Detailed description
Older adults (aged ≥65) with advanced cancer are living longer due to more effective treatments, but their median survival remains around one year. We have shown that this population experiences a high prevalence of aging-related conditions, including functional and cognitive impairments, as well as depressive and anxiety symptoms. These conditions heighten their vulnerability to treatment toxicities and increase their need for assistance with daily activities. Together, these challenges impair older adults' ability to manage their care (patient activation) and reduce their overall quality of life (QoL). Therefore, interventions are needed to increase patient activation and improve QoL in this vulnerable population.
Fostering supportive social networks (SNs) can help older adults navigate the burden of cancer and its treatments. SNs comprise individuals (e.g., family members and friends) connected by interpersonal relationships. SN members offer a range of support, including instrumental, emotional, and informational support. They play pivotal roles in clinical settings, particularly for older individuals with functional impairments. SN members attend clinic visits and advocate for patients, ensuring accurate exchange and filtering of information to align with patients' preferences. SN members also shape patients' identities, coping strategies, and disease understanding. The role of SNs becomes more prominent as older adults become more ill.
The SOcial Networks to Activate Teamwork \& Alliance (SONATA) intervention was designed to harness the SNs to provide support to older adults with advanced cancer and increase patient activation and improve QoL. The objective of this study is to conduct a pilot randomized controlled trial assessing SONATA compared to enhanced usual care among 70 older adults with advanced cancer.
Interventions
- Behavioral SONATA
SONATA includes six evidence-based components to help patients: 1) identify and set personal goals to achieve well-being (goal-setting); 2) identify their social network (SN) members and map their SNs (network diagnostics); 3) engage key SN members to address their goals and needs (network engagement); 4) build channels for communication and collaboration with key SN members via in-person and virtual activities (opportunity creation); 5) communicate effectively with their key SN members, develop
Primary outcome measures
- Study feasibility [Time frame: From baseline to week 16]
Secondary outcome measures (4)
- Emotional, social, and existential quality of life [Time frame: From baseline to week 16]
- Patient Activation [Time frame: From baseline to week 16.]
- Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness [Time frame: From baseline to week 16]
- Social Support [Time frame: From baseline to week 16]
Eligibility criteria
Patients
Inclusion criteria
- Age ≥65 years
- A diagnosis of advanced or likely incurable cancer, as determined by the primary oncologist
- Able to speak English
- Able to provide informed consent
Exclusion criteria
- Any psychiatric or cognitive impairments interfering with participation as determined by the oncology team
- Unwilling to complete study procedures
Social Network Members (if available, for intervention arm only)
Inclusion criteria
- Age ≥18 years
- Identified as an SN member by the patient in the intervention arm
- Able to speak English
- Able to provide informed consent
Exclusion criteria
- Unwilling to complete study procedures
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Open label
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
Study locations
United States · 1 center
- University of Rochester — Rochester
Publications
- Kehoe L, Sanapala C, DiGiovanni G, Yousefi-Nooraie R, Yilmaz S, Bauer J, Loh KP, Norton S, Duberstein P, Kamen C, Gilmore N, Gudina A, Kleckner A, Mohile S, Epstein RM. Older adults with advanced cancer are selective in sharing and seeking information with social networks. Patient Educ Couns. 2022 Oct;105(10):3116-3122. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2022.06.005. Epub 2022 Jun 9. PMID 35717349
- Yu V, Yilmaz S, Freitag J, Loh KP, Kehoe L, Digiovanni G, Bauer J, Sanapala C, Epstein RM, Yousefi-Nooraie R, Mohile S. The role of social networks in prognostic understanding of older adults with advanced cancer. Patient Educ Couns. 2023 Jan;106:135-141. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2022.10.009. Epub 2022 Oct 15. PMID 36270857
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07393529 · UOCPC26005