Many pediatric cancer patients and their parents experience serious psychosocial problems during and long after completing treatment. Designing interventions to significantly reduce these problems requires understanding their origins. Thus, our primary objective is to identify specific factors that directly and indirectly affect psychosocial adjustment. Previous research shows: (a) both parents'and children's long-term psychosocial outcomes are rooted in the treatment experience;(b) invasive treatment procedures during clinic visits (e.g., lumbar punctures) are one of the most stressful aspects of pediatric cancer;and thus (c) negative responses to these procedures (e.g., distress) place parents and children at greater risk for subsequent psychosocial problems. We have found that variability in children's immediate responses to treatment procedures is associated with variability in situational resources (i.e., resources on days of clinic visits) and in parent-child communication patterns during clinic visits. Our model of causes of psychosocial problems associated with pediatric cancer is based on these and other empirical findings. It posits that: (a) stable family resources (i.e., social, personal, and fiscal/material resources) directly affect parents'and children's psychosocial well-being;(b) stable and situational family resources affect parent-child communication during clinic visits;and (c) parent-child communication affects their responses to procedures and subsequent psychosocial adjustment.
Our first aim (Phase 1) is to replicate and extend prior research on relationships among the variables in the model and to determine the viability of the overall model.
Our second aim (Phase 2) is to experimentally test causal relationships between specific variables in the model and parents'and children's responses to procedures. We will conduct two separate experiments that manipulate specific situational resources and parent communication behavior and examine the direct and/or indirect effects on immediate responses to treatment procedures and on subsequent psychosocial adjustment. Phase 1 will enroll 130-150 total families of recently diagnosed pediatric cancer patients at two institutions. Families'stable resources and situational resources on days of clinic visits will be assessed. Parent-child interactions during three clinic visits will be video recorded and responses to treatment procedures will be assessed. Children's and parents'psychosocial adjustment will be assessed three, six, and nine months after completion of video-recorded clinic visits. In Phase 2, 130-150 families from the two institutions will be randomly assigned to control and experimental treatment conditions. Experimental groups will receive the manipulations. Control groups will receive standard of care. Families will be assessed in the same manner as in Phase 1.

Public Health Relevance

Previous research indicates that: (a) invasive treatment procedures are one of the most stressful aspects of pediatric cancer and (b) parents'and children's negative long-term psychosocial outcomes are rooted in distress reactions associated with those procedures. Families'personal and social resources at the time of treatment and parent-child communication patterns during treatment-related clinic visits are associated with children's responses (i.e., pain and distress) to treatment procedures. The proposed study will identify and experimentally test relationships between specific social and personal resources and parent-child communication and parent/child immediate responses to treatment procedures and psychosocial adjustment. The study will provide the basis for interventions ameliorating some of the major negative psychosocial effects of pediatric cancer.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01CA138981-04
Application #
8267079
Study Section
Social Psychology, Personality and Interpersonal Processes Study Section (SPIP)
Program Officer
O'Mara, Ann M
Project Start
2009-08-01
Project End
2014-05-31
Budget Start
2012-06-01
Budget End
2013-05-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2012
Total Cost
$595,909
Indirect Cost
$164,442
Name
Wayne State University
Department
Family Medicine
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
001962224
City
Detroit
State
MI
Country
United States
Zip Code
48202
Bai, Jinbing; Swanson, Kristen M; Harper, Felicity W K et al. (2018) Longitudinal Analysis of Parent Communication Behaviors and Child Distress during Cancer Port Start Procedures. Pain Manag Nurs 19:487-496
Bai, Jinbing; Harper, Felicity W K; Penner, Louis A et al. (2017) Parents' Verbal and Nonverbal Caring Behaviors and Child Distress During Cancer-Related Port Access Procedures: A Time-Window Sequential Analysis. Oncol Nurs Forum 44:675-687
Bai, Jinbing; Swanson, Kristen; Harper, Felicity W K et al. (2017) Parent Caring Response Scoring System: development and psychometric evaluation in the context of childhood cancer-related port starts. Scand J Caring Sci :
Trentacosta, Christopher J; Harper, Felicity W K; Albrecht, Terrance L et al. (2016) Pediatric Cancer Patients' Treatment-Related Distress and Longer-Term Anxiety: An Individual Differences Perspective. J Dev Behav Pediatr 37:753-761
Penner, Louis A; Guevarra, Darwin A; Harper, Felicity W K et al. (2016) Self-distancing Buffers High Trait Anxious Pediatric Cancer Caregivers against Short- and Longer-term Distress. Clin Psychol Sci 4:629-640
Penner, Louis A; Dovidio, John F; Gonzalez, Richard et al. (2016) The Effects of Oncologist Implicit Racial Bias in Racially Discordant Oncology Interactions. J Clin Oncol 34:2874-80
Harper, Felicity W K; Peterson, Amy M; Albrecht, Terrance L et al. (2016) Satisfaction with support versus size of network: differential effects of social support on psychological distress in parents of pediatric cancer patients. Psychooncology 25:551-8
Harper, Felicity W K; Eggly, Susan; Crider, Beverly et al. (2015) Patient- and Family-Centered Care as an approach to reducing disparities in asthma outcomes in urban African American children: A review of the literature. J Natl Med Assoc 107:4-17
Harper, Felicity W K; Goodlett, Benjamin D; Trentacosta, Christopher J et al. (2014) Temperament, personality, and quality of life in pediatric cancer patients. J Pediatr Psychol 39:459-68
Harper, Felicity W K; Peterson, Amy M; Albrecht, Terrance L et al. (2014) Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms in Parents of Pediatric Cancer Patients: A Mediational Analysis. J Trauma Stress Disord Treat 3:

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