Self-Regulation Program Helps Breast Cancer Patients

Researchers from the School of Nursing at the University of Michigan evaluated a program of self-management for breast cancer patients after treatment. The program, called Taking CHARGE, involved a two-pronged approach building on self-regulation principles to (1) equip women with self-management skills to address concerns following breast cancer treatment, and (2) provide information about common survivorship topics.

The program involved four intervention contacts, two small group meetings and two individualized telephone sessions, delivered by nurse/health educators.

Evaluation was done with 25 women, aged 34-66 years, who completed breast cancer treatment, and were randomly assigned to the intervention group. Questions were geared toward the relevance and usefulness of the self-regulation approach, informational aspects, and program delivery.

The findings indicated that intervention group participants found the Taking CHARGE program to be timely, relevant, and to have high utility in dealing with concerns that exist following breast cancer treatment, thus providing early evidence of the usefulness of the Taking CHARGE intervention for successful transition to survivorship following breast cancer treatment.

Citation: Cimprich B, Janz NK, Northouse L, Wren PA, Given B, Given CW. Taking CHARGE: A self-management program for women following breast cancer treatment. Psychooncology. 2005 Sep; 14 (9): pages 704-17. cimprich@umich.edu