Assessment of the Promoting Resilience in Stress Management Intervention for Adolescent and Young Adult Survivors of Cancer at 2 Years: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

Importance: Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer have a high risk of poor psychosocial outcomes. The Promoting Resilience in Stress Management (PRISM) intervention is one of few psychosocial interventions targeting younger people with cancer that has demonstrated efficacy in a randomized clinical trial. Objective: To explore 2-year trajectories of patient-reported well-being among AYA cancer survivors. The hypothesis was that AYAs who initially responded to PRISM would report sustained positive changes. Design, Setting, and Participants: This secondary analysis of data from a single-center, parallel, phase 2 randomized clinical trial was conducted from January 2015 to October 2016. Eligible participants were English-speaking AYAs between ages 13 and 25 years with cancer treated at a single, quaternary children's hospital in the US. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to PRISM or usual care. Data were analyzed between March 2021 and June 2021. Intervention: PRISM is a brief, skills-based coaching program targeting 4 resilience resources (stress management, goal setting, cognitive reframing, and meaning making). Main Outcomes and Measures: Patient-reported cancer-related quality of life (QoL) (PedsQL scale), hope (Hope scale), resilience (Connor-Davidson Resilience scale), and psychological distress (Kessler-6 scale) were collected at baseline, 6, 12, and 24 months. Data from AYAs who remained alive at 24 months were analyzed. Improvement was defined as a positive change in instrument scores between baseline and 6 months (ie, the end of the PRISM program) and used linear mixed effects regression to assess changes over time. Results: A total of 57 AYAs were included in analysis at 24 months (62% of 92 randomized). Twenty-six participants (46%) were female; 36 (63%) were between ages 13 and 17 years; and 20 (35%) identified as part of a racial or ethnic minority group (4 [7%] Asian, 11 [19%] Hispanic or Latino, 16 [28%] mixed race or other). PRISM was associated with improved QoL, hope, resilience, and distress between baseline and 6 months, and these associations were sustained for QoL over 12 months (β = 7.4; 95% CI, 0.8 to 14; P =.03) and hope throughout the study period (12 months: β = 6.2; 95% CI, 2.7 to 9.6; P