A new study will measure the preliminary efficacy of the Serious Illness Care Program on healthcare communication, patient anxiety and distress, and the completion of advance directives for patients with acute myeloid leukemia, myelodysplastic syndromes, and similar myeloid malignancies. It will enroll patients aged 60 or more years.
The pilot study will compare the efficacy of the telehealth-delivered program to that of an education control in an estimated 64 patients at the University of Rochester in New York. The study cohort will also include patients with myeloid malignancy, myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasm, or myelofibrosis (MF).
The primary outcome measure of the study will be patients’ and caregivers’ satisfaction with patient-clinician communication. Secondary outcome measures will be distress, anxiety symptoms, and the percentage of patients who complete advance directives including the Medical or Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (MOST/POLST) forms, will to live, durable power of attorney for healthcare, and healthcare proxy forms, and the date of completion of these forms.
Patient recruitment is estimated to start on October 1, 2023, and be completed on December 31, 2025.
Read more about the prognosis of MF
The Serious Illness Care Program is an evidence-based intervention that aims to enhance conversations about serious illness between patients with advanced cancer and their physicians. It consists of the Serious Illness Conversation Guide as well as training and system-level support for clinicians.
MF is a rare blood disorder characterized by the scarring of the bone marrow caused by the production of excess fibrous tissue. This tissue interferes with the normal production of blood cells and leads to symptoms such as anemia, easy bleeding and bruising, fatigue, bone or joint pain, and splenomegaly.
The prognosis of the disease varies, with some patients remaining stable for long periods of time and others experiencing rapid disease progression that can develop into acute myeloid leukemia.
Reference
A telehealth advance care planning intervention (TeleSICP). ClinicalTrials.gov. May 25, 2023. Updated May 26, 2023. Accessed June 1, 2023.
