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CompletedNCT00920504PEINCAUpdated Feb 9, 2012

Pilot Study to Test the Feasibility and the Efficacy of the German Language Adapted PRO-SELF© Plus Pain Control Program

An interventional study of German PRO-SELF(c) Plus Pain Control Program (PCP) and Standard Care in Neoplasm Metastasis, sponsored by University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland. Completed at 1 site in Germany. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2012-02-09.

Sponsored by University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland · Not applicable, Interventional, and Supportive care

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
39
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
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Study summary

The purpose of this pilot study is to refine and test an advanced and adapted German version of the PRO-SELF© Plus Pain Control Program (PCP), an educational intervention directed at cancer pain patients and their families to enhance their pain self management abilities, and to calculate effect sizes for the planning of a sufficiently powered randomized controlled trial (RCT).

Read the detailed description

Background: Cancer patients experience multiple symptoms throughout the different stages of their illness, with pain as one of the most frequent. Even though effective treatment options exist, more than 40% of all cancer pain patients do not receive adequate pain management. For pain control, in addition to state of the art treatment by professionals, patients and their family caregivers (FCs) have to use self care strategies on a daily basis, a complex process that profits from targeted support by health care providers (HCPs). In phase 1 of this study, the intervention and the study instruments have been translated, adapted and advanced.

Aims: The purpose of this pilot study is to refine and test an advanced and adapted German version of the PRO-SELF© Plus Pain Control Program (PCP), an educational intervention directed at cancer pain patients and their families to enhance their pain self management abilities, and to calculate effect sizes for the planning of a sufficiently powered randomized controlled trial (RCT).

Methods: The advanced and adapted German version of the PRO-SELF© Plus PCP will be tested in a pilot RCT in cancer patients with pain from bone metastasis, compared with standard care, with effect sizes being calculated for the planning of a sufficiently powered RCT. A qualitative sub study will explore patients' and FCs' experiences with pain management, with the educational intervention, and their view of burden and benefit from study participation.

Intervention: The PRO-SELF© Plus PCP is based on three key strategies: (a) provision of information, (b) skill building, and (c) nurse coaching. The 10-week educational program comprises a structured part (teaching of pain management skills including the use of a weekly pillbox, the use of a pain management diary and written instructions on how to communicate with the physician about unrelieved pain) and a tailored part. The patient's answers on questions about his knowledge of pain management serve as basis for tailoring the teaching (academic detailing).

Data analysis: Main outcome variables will be average and worst pain as reported daily by the patient. In order to determine effect sizes for main effect of group, main effect of time and the group by time interaction a repeated measure longitudinal design will be used employing a linear mixed model approach. For the qualitative part, interviews will be analyzed using content analysis.

02

Conditions studied

  • Neoplasm Metastasis

Keywords

  • Mesh: patient education as topic
  • Mesh: neoplasms
  • Mesh: medication therapy management
  • pain self management
  • symptom management
  • education of patients with pain from neoplasm metastases
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In context

Neoplasms

9,359 studies on the registry are indexed under Neoplasms; 2,486 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 39 is below the median of 50 across 7,250 interventional studies indexed under Neoplasms.

Browse Neoplasms studies →

Lead sponsor

University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland is the lead sponsor of 968 studies on the registry; 191 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Outpatients
  • with cancer related pain ≥ 3 on a scale of 0-10 during the last two weeks,
  • estimated life expectancy of > 6 months as assessed by the physician,
  • 18 years of age or older,
  • able to understand, read and write German,
  • have access to a telephone,
  • live in a 1 hour distance around Freiburg or are willing to travel to Freiburg for each visit, agree to participate and give written in-formed consent

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • documented previous or current psychiatric disorder or cognitive impairment as assessed by the physician (that is, unable to understand and provide informed consent),
  • visual or hearing impairment that prevents adequate communication,
  • a named FC who is not willing to participate in the study
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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Supportive care
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
39 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    German PRO-SELF(c) Plus PCP

    Group receives 10 weeks German PRO-SELF(c) Plus PCP intervention program

    Behavioral: German PRO-SELF(c) Plus Pain Control Program (PCP)

  • Active comparator
    Standard Care

    control group receives attention control and standard care

    Behavioral: German PRO-SELF(c) Plus Pain Control Program (PCP) · Other: Standard Care

Interventions

  • BehavioralGerman PRO-SELF(c) Plus Pain Control Program (PCP)

    Educational intervention directed at patients and their family caregivers to reduce cancer pain and related symptoms

  • OtherStandard Care

    Patients in the standard care group will receive routine care provided by their treating physicians without any further care concerning the PRO-SELF© PCP. Patients in the standard care group will be seen by a research nurse in their homes at weeks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 and telephone interviews will be conducted at weeks 3, 5, 7 and 9 but the focus of the visits and phone calls will be data collection only.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. average and worst pain as reported daily by patients on a scale from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst imaginable pain)

    Time frame: measured daily for 10 weeks and in week 14 and 22

Secondary outcomes

  1. patients' knowledge of cancer pain management

    Time frame: baseline, week 6, 10, 14 and 22

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Study locations

1 site
  • Tumorzentrum Ludwig Heilmeyer Comprehensive Cancer Center Freiburg
    Freiburg, 79106, Germany
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References and documents

Publications

  • Koller A, Miaskowski C, De Geest S, Opitz O, Spichiger E. Results of a randomized controlled pilot study of a self-management intervention for cancer pain. Eur J Oncol Nurs. 2013 Jun;17(3):284-91. doi: 10.1016/j.ejon.2012.08.002. Epub 2012 Sep 4. PubMed 22959603 ↗
  • Koller A, Miaskowski C, De Geest S, Opitz O, Spichiger E. Supporting self-management of pain in cancer patients: methods and lessons learned from a randomized controlled pilot study. Eur J Oncol Nurs. 2013 Feb;17(1):1-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ejon.2012.02.006. Epub 2012 Mar 28. PubMed 22459260 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Feb 9, 2012, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT00920504
Lead sponsor
University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
Collaborators
University of Basel, University Hospital Freiburg, University of California, San Francisco
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Jun 15, 2009
Start date
Jun 2009
Primary completion
Jun 2011
Completion
Jun 2011
Last update
Feb 9, 2012

Study contacts

Elisabeth Spichiger, PhD
principal investigator · Institute of Nursing Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Basel, Switzerland

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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