Clinical trial · Observational
Expressive Writing and Adjustment to Metastatic Breast Cancer
NCT00624156CI-TRIAL-00019656completedClinicalTrials.gov clinicaltrialsProvenance
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
We are doing this study to see if writing about life experiences helps women adjust to breast cancer that has spread. We will compare two groups. One group will write about their breast cancer experience. The other will write about their daily activities. What we learn from this study may help us to find new ways to help women cope with breast cancer that has spread.
Conditions
Conditions (1)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metastatic Breast Cancer | Malignant Breast Neoplasm | CURATED_BROADER | 0.78 |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Writing Intervention | Behavioral | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (2)
- label
- 1
- description
- emotional disclosure writing intervention
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Writing Intervention
- label
- 2
- description
- control writing
- interventionNames
- Behavioral: Writing Intervention
Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
- Determine the potential utility of expressive writing for enhancing existential well-being (i.e., increasing a sense of meaning and peace and reducing demoralization) among women with metastatic breast cancer.
- timeFrame
- conclusion of the study
Secondary outcomes (1)
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- Female
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Women with Stage IV breast cancer * Receiving cancer care at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center * At least 18 years of age * Can speak, read, and write in English * In the judgment of consenting professionals able to provide informed consent * Score of 4 or higher on the distress thermometer (established cutoff score for probable distress; see Jacobsen et al., 2005) Exclusion Criteria: * Significant psychiatric or cognitive impairment (dementia/delirium, retardation, psychosis) that in the judgment of the investigators will preclude providing informed consent and participating in the intervention * Currently engaging in expressive writing (e.g., journal writing that involves expressing one's feelings) on a daily basis * Currently participating in intervention trials with similar endpoints • Male
References
Publications (1)
- DERIVEDMosher CE, Duhamel KN, Lam J, Dickler M, Li Y, Massie MJ, Norton L. Randomised trial of expressive writing for distressed metastatic breast cancer patients. Psychol Health. 2012;27(1):88-100. doi: 10.1080/08870446.2010.551212. Epub 2011 Jul 8. PMID 21678181