Despite improvements in cancer therapy, the prognosis of metastatic lung and non-colorectal gastrointestinal cancers remains poor, with median survival rates of less than one year. During the course of illness, these patients often experience marked physical suffering, psychological distress and resource-intensive care at the end of life. While cancer treatment can extend survival, its impact on quality of life and distress is minimal for these patients. Moreover, the trend toward increased administration of anti-cancer therapy near the end of life negatively impacts quality of death, family caregiver bereavement, and the cost of health care delivery. Comprehensive cancer care ideally would include interventions to diminish suffering as well as enhance the quality and delivery of care for patients with limited life expectancy and high symptom burden. We hypothesize that a highly integrated model of early palliative care will improve quality of life and mood in both patients and their family caregivers as well as facilitate the delivery of quality end-of-life care. Palliative care clinicians focus on multiple aspects of care including support and education to assist with treatment decision-making, physical and psychological symptoms, as well as spiritual and existential concerns. Our previous randomized study of early, integrated palliative and oncology care versus standard oncology care alone in patients with newly diagnosed metastatic non-small cell lung cancer demonstrated marked improvements in patient-reported outcomes, quality of end-of-life care and resource use. Despite receiving less chemotherapy at the end of life and utilizing more hospice services, patients assigned to early palliative care had prolonged survival compared with patients receiving standard care. We now propose a larger, randomized controlled trial using mixed quantitative and qualitative methods to expand our findings in patients with newly diagnosed metastatic lung and non-colorectal gastrointestinal malignancies. The goals of this study are to: 1) demonstrate the efficacy and generalization of the early palliative care model to improve quality of life, mood, quality of end of life care, resource utilization and survival in a more diverse sample of patients with poor prognosis, metastatic cancers;2) examine potential mediators of the relationship between receiving early palliative care and patient outcomes, including prolonged survival;and 3) operationalize national guidelines for quality ambulatory palliative care into an evidence-based manual of preferred practices that can be disseminated broadly for clinical and research purposes. This single-institution study will serve as the foundation for a multisite trial utilizing our evidence-based manual of preferred palliative care practices to ensure a measurable and reproducible intervention. The long-term goals of this research are to improve patient outcomes and transform oncology practice by enhancing the quality of end-of-life care and optimizing resource utilization through timely integration of palliative and cancer care in patients with metastatic disease. Achieving these critical goals without negatively impacting patient survival would undeniably challenge existing paradigms in cancer care.

Public Health Relevance

The goal of this project is to enhance the care of patients with poor prognosis, metastatic cancers by involving palliative care soon after diagnosis. Although palliative care teams have traditionally seen patients late in the course of disease, this study seeks to demonstrate that their early involvement aids with treatment decision- making and leads to improved quality of life and mood in patients with advanced cancer. We hope that combining palliative care with traditional cancer treatment will not only prove beneficial for patients and their families but also transform comprehensive cancer care.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01NR012735-03
Application #
8443352
Study Section
Behavioral Medicine, Interventions and Outcomes Study Section (BMIO)
Program Officer
Mccloskey, Donna J
Project Start
2011-04-06
Project End
2016-03-31
Budget Start
2013-04-01
Budget End
2014-03-31
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2013
Total Cost
$385,760
Indirect Cost
$76,684
Name
Massachusetts General Hospital
Department
Type
DUNS #
073130411
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02199
Nipp, Ryan D; Fuchs, Georg; El-Jawahri, Areej et al. (2018) Sarcopenia Is Associated with Quality of Life and Depression in Patients with Advanced Cancer. Oncologist 23:97-104
Greer, Joseph A; Jacobs, Jamie M; El-Jawahri, Areej et al. (2018) Role of Patient Coping Strategies in Understanding the Effects of Early Palliative Care on Quality of Life and Mood. J Clin Oncol 36:53-60
Hoerger, Michael; Greer, Joseph A; Jackson, Vicki A et al. (2018) Defining the Elements of Early Palliative Care That Are Associated With Patient-Reported Outcomes and the Delivery of End-of-Life Care. J Clin Oncol 36:1096-1102
Nipp, Ryan D; Greer, Joseph A; El-Jawahri, Areej et al. (2017) Coping and Prognostic Awareness in Patients With Advanced Cancer. J Clin Oncol 35:2551-2557
Shaffer, Kelly M; Jacobs, Jamie M; Nipp, Ryan D et al. (2017) Mental and physical health correlates among family caregivers of patients with newly-diagnosed incurable cancer: a hierarchical linear regression analysis. Support Care Cancer 25:965-971
Shaffer, Kelly M; Jacobs, Jamie M; Coleman, Jessica N et al. (2017) Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms Among Two Seriously Medically Ill Populations and Their Family Caregivers: A Comparison and Clinical Implications. Neurocrit Care 27:180-186
Temel, Jennifer S; Greer, Joseph A; El-Jawahri, Areej et al. (2017) Effects of Early Integrated Palliative Care in Patients With Lung and GI Cancer: A Randomized Clinical Trial. J Clin Oncol 35:834-841
Hagan, Teresa L; Fishbein, Joel N; Nipp, Ryan D et al. (2017) Coping in Patients With Incurable Lung and Gastrointestinal Cancers: A Validation Study of the Brief COPE. J Pain Symptom Manage 53:131-138
Jacobs, Jamie M; Shaffer, Kelly M; Nipp, Ryan D et al. (2017) Distress is Interdependent in Patients and Caregivers with Newly Diagnosed Incurable Cancers. Ann Behav Med 51:519-531
Nipp, Ryan D; El-Jawahri, Areej; Fishbein, Joel N et al. (2016) The relationship between coping strategies, quality of life, and mood in patients with incurable cancer. Cancer 122:2110-6

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