Short-term effects of telephone therapy for breast cancer patients

The authors report the short-term effects of a clinical trial testing 2 telephone therapies for breast cancer patients. Women (N = 222) with breast cancer were recruited and randomly assigned to cancer education, emotional expression, or standard care. Oncology nurses conducted 6 individual 30-min-therapy phone sessions. Women in the cancer education condition reported greater perceived control than women in the standard care condition. No treatment effects were obtained for mood or quality of life. These are the 1st data from a large-scale study testing telephone therapy, and they suggest that such therapies may be ineffective. Explanations for the results include therapy type and delivery, participant characteristics, short- versus long-term results, therapy content, and whether therapy is necessary for breast cancer patients.