Abstract 52: Implementation of a Hospital-Based Peer Support Intervention Model for Cancer Patients: Results From a Pilot Study in Vietnam

Abstract

Abstract Purpose: Provision of mental health psychosocial support can reduce psychological distress experienced by cancer patients, which can in turn improve their treatment adherence and outcomes. In this study, we present the results from the pilot trial of Stronger Together, a culturally adapted peer-to-peer support program, conducted in Vietnam. Methods: We recruited eligible women from four hospitals in Vietnam (K3 National Cancer Hospital, Hue Central Hospital Oncology Center, Can Tho Oncology Hospital, and Hung Vong Women’s Hospital Oncology Unit). Participants were newly diagnosed with breast or gynecologic cancers, and self-selected into either the control (usual care) or intervention arm (mentees who were matched up with trained peer mentors). Validated questionnaires were administered at baseline (0), 2-, 4-, and 6-months. We conducted a difference-in-difference (DID) analysis for the primary outcomes (assessed by the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale [DASS-21]), comparing the difference in scores from baseline to 6 months and between intervention arms (mentees vs. usual care). Results: The analytic sample included n=186 participants (mentees: 91; usual care: 95), with the majority having breast cancer (85.5%), followed by cervical cancer (7.5%) and ovarian cancer (7.0%). There were no statistically significant differences between study arms in demographic and cancer characteristics (cancer type and stage). DID analyses showed that compared to usual care participants, mentees (those who received peer support) showed greater reductions in depression, anxiety, and stress scores between baseline and 6 months. Adjusting for age, education, marital status, and cancer stage, statistically significant reductions in stress scores (β=-1.47; 95%CI: [-2.9,-0.02]; p=0.047) were observed. Among breast cancer patients only, adjusted models showed significant reductions in depression scores (β=-1.80; 95%CI: [-3.0,-0.48]; p=0.007) and stress scores (β=-1.9; 95%CI: [-3.3,-0.37; p=0.015). Conclusion: The Stronger Together pilot study study shows that utilizing peer cancer survivors is a promising strategy to address the psychosocial needs of newly diagnosed cancer patients in low-resource settings. Future research should test this intervention model in larger samples or other similar populations and settings. Citation Format: PhuongThao Le, Carolyn Taylor, Rachel Monahan, Mai Do, Linh Nguyen, Minh Tri Phan, Cong Wang, Huong Tran, Ophira Ginsburg. Implementation of a Hospital-Based Peer Support Intervention Model for Cancer Patients: Results From a Pilot Study in Vietnam [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 11th Annual Symposium on Global Cancer Research; Closing the Research-to-Implementation Gap; 2023 Apr 4-6. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2023;32(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 52.