Psychosocial Interventions for Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer: An Integrative Review

Background: Adolescents and young adults with cancer sit in a precarious position facing an increasing cancer incidence while incidence in other age groups has been declining. A cancer diagnosis at this age imposes undue distress in a demographic with limited coping resources creating psychosocial needs that differ from children and older adults. Addressing psychosocial needs early in the cancer trajectory is postulated as an approach to address distress, improve quality of life, and promote optimal outcomes from therapy. The purpose of this review is to identify current successful approaches to psychosocial care in adolescents and young adults receiving therapy for cancer. Method: An integrative review of publications identified through six relevant databases was conducted. Thematic analysis was performed to identify types of interventions followed by assessment of publication level of evidence, quality, and a critique of the effectiveness of interventions. Findings: A total of 6,292 articles were identified and 17 met inclusion criteria for this review. Thematic analysis and critique identified six themes for intervention approaches with mixed outcomes: creative expression, promoting peer interactions, individual coaching, employing technology, promoting physical activity, and clinical interactions. Discussion: Adolescent and young adult psychosocial needs while receiving treatment are complex and best addressed with the involvement of an interdisciplinary team. Effective interventions include those that have been tailored to the patient and consider the individual’s developmental stage. Interventions that promote autonomy and decision making, provide privacy, are executed in individual sessions, and facilitate social/peer interactions have been more successful in improving psychosocial outcomes.

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To be or not to be in the social media arena? The perspective of healthcare providers working within adolescent and young adult oncology in Switzerland

International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health ◽

10.1515/ijamh-2020-0137 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Eva De Clercq ◽

Michael Rost ◽

Nicolas von der Weid ◽

Marc Ansari ◽

Bernice S. Elger

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Young Adults ◽

Clinical Practice ◽

Focus Groups ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Healthcare Professionals ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Adolescent And Young Adult ◽

Psychosocial Needs ◽

The Social

AbstractBackgroundGiven that social media is quickly penetrating clinical practice, it is essential to explore how these technologies can be used to improve patient-centered care. This is particularly important for healthcare professionals caring for adolescents and young adults (AYA), amid whom the use of social media is nearly universal and whose medical and psychosocial needs are often underestimated by the pediatric or adult oncology settings in which they are treated.ObjectivesTo examine the perspectives of various medical professionals on the emerging role of social media in AYA oncology.MethodsThree focus groups were performed with Swiss healthcare professionals involved in the care of AYA patients with cancer. The focus groups were analyzed using thematic coding.ResultsHealthcare professionals caring for AYA cancer patients in Switzerland are reluctant to step into the social media sphere because they find it difficult to navigate professional boundaries in an unfamiliar space where different contexts collapse. Nurses and younger healthcare professionals who tend to have a more intimate relationship with AYA, often lack virtual mentorship to know how to maintain online professionalism. Adolescents and young adults cancer-related social media presence was unknown to our participants which resulted in missed occasions to inform, educate and care for this often underserved population of cancer patients.ConclusionsMore practical guidance is needed to help healthcare professionals with how to integrate social media into clinical practice. Setting up fruitful collaborations between medical institutions and existing AYA support groups online might be the best way forward.

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The Australian Youth Cancer Service: Developing and Monitoring the Activity of Nationally Coordinated Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Care

Cancers ◽

10.3390/cancers13112675 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 2675

Author(s):

Pandora Patterson ◽

Kimberley R. Allison ◽

Helen Bibby ◽

Kate Thompson ◽

Jeremy Lewin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Clinical Trial ◽

Young Adults ◽

Cancer Care ◽

Young Patients ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Adolescent And Young Adult ◽

Trial Participation ◽

Clinical Trial Participation ◽

Activity Data ◽

Cancer Services

Adolescents and young adults (aged 15–25 years) diagnosed with cancer have unique medical and psychosocial experiences and care needs, distinct from those of paediatric and older adult patients. Since 2011, the Australian Youth Cancer Services have provided developmentally appropriate, multidisciplinary and comprehensive care to these young patients, facilitated by national service coordination and activity data collection and monitoring. This paper reports on how the Youth Cancer Services have conceptualised and delivered quality youth cancer care in four priority areas: clinical trial participation, oncofertility, psychosocial care and survivorship. National activity data collected by the Youth Cancer Services between 2016–17 and 2019–20 are used to illustrate how service monitoring processes have facilitated improvements in coordination and accountability across multiple indicators of quality youth cancer care, including clinical trial participation, access to fertility information and preservation, psychosocial screening and care and the transition from active treatment to survivorship. Accounts of both service delivery and monitoring and evaluation processes within the Australian Youth Cancer Services provide an exemplar of how coordinated initiatives may be employed to deliver, monitor and improve quality cancer care for adolescents and young adults.

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Advance Directives for Adolescents and Young Adults Living with Neuromuscular Disease: An Integrative Review of the Literature: Erratum

Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing ◽

10.1097/njh.0000000000000814 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 23 (6) ◽

pp. 511-511

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Advance Directives ◽

Neuromuscular Disease ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Integrative Review ◽

Review Of The Literature

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Opioid overdose experiences in a sample of US adolescents and young adults: a thematic analysis

Addiction ◽

10.1111/add.15216 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Laura B. Monico ◽

Ariel Ludwig ◽

Elizabeth Lertch ◽

Ross Dionne ◽

Marc Fishman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Thematic Analysis ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Opioid Overdose

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Improving recruitment and retention of adolescents and young adults with cancer in randomized controlled clinical trials

International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health ◽

10.1515/ijamh-2018-0215 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 0 (0) ◽

Author(s):

Sharron L. Docherty ◽

Stacey Crane ◽

Joan E. Haase ◽

Sheri L. Robb

Keyword(s):

Clinical Trials ◽

Young Adults ◽

Randomized Clinical Trials ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Adolescent And Young Adult ◽

Recruitment And Retention ◽

Randomized Controlled Clinical Trials ◽

Pros And Cons ◽

Adult Resilience ◽

Psychosocial Programs

Abstract Participation of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer in randomized clinical trials (RCTs) is necessary to advance treatments and psychosocial programs. Exploring AYAs experiences in an RCT will inform strategies to support recruitment and retention. A qualitative design was used to study the experiences of 13 AYAs in the Stories and Music for Adolescent and Young Adult Resilience during Transplant I (SMART I) trial. Key themes included: Weighing the Pros and Cons; Randomization Preferences; Completing Measures; and Worthwhile Experience. The experiences of AYAs during RCTs can bring insights that inform the design and management of AYA trials. Strategies include improving assent/consent processes, design of electronic interfaces and encouraging researcher flexibility.

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3245 Comparison of Health Outcomes in Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Oncology Patients Treated at a Pediatric versus Adult Institute

Journal of Clinical and Translational Science ◽

10.1017/cts.2019.321 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (s1) ◽

pp. 141-142

Author(s):

Amy Moskop ◽

Julie Panepinto ◽

Sadie Dobrozsi

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Supportive Care ◽

Health Outcomes ◽

Hodgkin Lymphoma ◽

Pediatric Cancer ◽

Germ Cell Tumors ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Adolescent And Young Adult ◽

Cancer Center ◽

Study Population

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Objectives: To examine the differences in health outcomes of adolescents and young adults treated for malignancy at a pediatric cancer center compared to an adult cancer center. To determine the differences in receipt of supportive care for adolescents and young adults with malignancy who are treated at a pediatric cancer center compared to an adult cancer center. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Methods: This will be a retrospective cohort study of patients from the ages of 15 to 39 years who are diagnosed with a malignancy common between adult and pediatric facilities within 2013-2017. Data will be abstracted from an existing database at MCW containing patient information at the adult and pediatric centers. Study population: Patients ages 15-39 years of age who are categorized as young adolescent and adult patients (AYAs). Patients are eligible for the cohort if they have a diagnosis that is common between adult and pediatric oncology centers and that is made within the years 2013-2017. These diagnoses will include ALL, AML, Hodgkin Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, Germ cell tumors, Osteosarcoma, Ewing Sarcoma, other sarcomas, and CNS tumors. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: There will be a difference in health care utilization, clinical trial enrollment and toxicity of therapy in AYAs with malignancies treated at an adult facility than AYAs treated for similar malignancy at pediatric facility. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: There will be a difference in receipt of supportive care referrals, including psychology, social work, sperm banking, initiation of palliative care, in AYAs treated at a pediatric facility compared to AYAs treated at adult facility.

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Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in Adolescents and Young Adults

Oncology & Hematology Review (US) ◽

10.17925/ohr.2012.08.2.116 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 08 (02) ◽

pp. 116 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Laura Rodriguez ◽

Angela Punnett ◽

◽

Keyword(s):

Young Adults ◽

Hodgkin’S Lymphoma ◽

Collaborative Study ◽

Study Groups ◽

Primary Treatment ◽

Adolescents And Young Adults ◽

Adolescent And Young Adult ◽

Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) are defined as those individuals between the ages of 15 and 39 years. Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) is the most common cancer observed in AYAs. Over the last two decades, significant improvements in both survival from HL and the reduction of therapy-related late effects have resulted from the work of collaborative study groups in pediatric and adult domains. The adolescent and young adult (AYA) population falls between these domains. AYA patients are in a critical developmental transition, with significant psychosocial challenges that may impact on the outcome of the primary treatment as well as on the medical care and surveillance of long-term sequelae in survivors. This article will examine available literature regarding outcomes for HL in the AYA population, identifying issues unique to this group, therapeutic options, and specific concerns in follow-up.

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