JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Patients with gastric cancer experienced different degrees of fear of cancer recurrence. The fear of cancer recurrence can cause and worsen many physical and psychological problems.

Objective:

Based on the "Intimacy and relationship processes in couples’ psychosocial adaptation" model, this study To examine the effectiveness of marital self-disclosure intervention on the level of fear of cancer recurrence, dyadic coping ability among gastric cancer survivors and their spouses.

Methods:

Methods:

A quasi-experimental study with a non-equivalent (pretest-posttest) control group design.The study will conduct at two tertiary hospitals in Taizhou city, Jiangsu province, China. A total of 42 patients with gastric cancer undergoing chemotherapy and their spouses will be recruited from each hospital. Participants from Hospital A will be allocated to the experimental group, while participants from Hospital B will be assigned to the control group. The experimental group participants will be involved in four phases of marital self-disclosure (different topics, face-to-face) intervention. Patients will be evaluated at baseline after a diagnosis of gastric cancer and reassessed two to four months after baseline. The primary outcome is the Fear of Progression Questionnaire-Short Form (FoP-Q-SF) for patients. The secondary outcome are the Fear of Progression Questionnaire-Short Form (FoP-Q-SF) for partners and the dyadic coping inventory.

Results:

Results:

Research activities began in October 2022. Participant enrollment and data collection began in February 2023 and are expected to be completed in 12 months.

Conclusions:

Discussion: This study aimed to design a protocol for marital self-disclosure intervention to improve the fear of cancer recurrence in Chinese patients with gastric cancer and their spouses. The study will more likely to yield desirable positive outcomes as marital self-disclosure is formulated based on evidence and inputs obtained through stakeholder interviews and expert consultation. The study process will be carried out by nurses who received psychological training, and the quality of interventions will be strictly controlled. Clinical Trial: The trial was registered in November 2022 at Clinical Trials.gov (NCT05606549). A written informed consent is obtained from all participants before inclusion in the study.