Our preliminary research has suggested that 60 percent of cancer patients have insomnia. This proposal plans to investigate the sleep patterns and variables of cancer insomniacs. In addition, we plan to investigate the efficacy of two medications, a tricyclic and a benzodiazepine, in cancer insomniacs. Non-small cell lung cancer patients who have unresectable disease and who are receiving radiation therapy as the only form of treatment will be studied. By limiting our study sample to this homogeneous group, we hope to limit some of the confounding variables. Fifty cancer insomniacs will enter a wash out period during which they receive no hypnotics while their therapy and current treatment plan remains constant. They will then sleep three nights in the Sleep Disorder Laboratory following which they will be randomized into a placebo group, an amitriptyline group, and a flurazepam group. They will take these medications at home for two weeks then return to the sleep laboratory for a final three nights of study. Twenty five noninsomniac cancer patients will also sleep three nights in the laboratory. Both cancer insomniacs and cancer non-insomniacs will be studied in the sleep laboratory at the same point in course of radiation therapy. A semi-structured psychiatric interview, psychometric evaluations, a physical performance rating, and daily sleep logs will augment the sleep laboratory data. Comparisons will be made between cancer insomniacs and the following groups: normals, non-insomniac cancer patients, psycho-physiological insomniacs, depressives, and patients with fibrositis. The goal of this project is to describe the sleep patterns of cancer patients and to evaluate the efficacy of sleeping medications for them.
| Silberfarb, P M; Hauri, P J; Oxman, T E et al. (1993) Assessment of sleep in patients with lung cancer and breast cancer. J Clin Oncol 11:997-1004 |
| Silberfarb, P M; Hauri, P J; Oxman, T E et al. (1985) Insomnia in cancer patients. Soc Sci Med 20:849-50 |
