Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 27, 2026

E-Patient Counseling Trial E-PACO: Computer Based Education versus Nurse Counseling for Patients to Prepare for Colonoscopy
Published on: August 1, 2019
A randomized pilot trial of a videoconference couples communication intervention for advanced GI cancer
Laura S Porter1, Francis J Keefe1, Donald H Baucom2
1Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA.
Objective:
This study aims to test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a couple-based communication intervention for advanced GI cancer delivered via videoconference.
Methods:
Thirty-two couples were randomly assigned to either couples communication skills training (CCST) or an education comparison intervention, both delivered via videoconference. Participation was limited to couples who reported communication difficulties at screening. Patients and partners completed measures of relationship functioning and individual functioning at baseline and post-intervention.
Results:
Eighty-eight percent of randomized dyads completed all six sessions and reported high levels of satisfaction with the intervention. Between-group effect sizes suggested that the CCST intervention led to improvements in relationship satisfaction for patients and partners and to improvements in intimacy and communication for patients.
Conclusions:
A couples-based communication intervention delivered via videoconference is feasible and acceptable in the context of advanced cancer. Preliminary findings suggest that the intervention shows promise in contributing to enhanced relationship functioning. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Related Concept Videos
Treatment Resistant Cancers
Clinical Trials
There are four phases in a clinical trial. A phase one...
Chronic Pancreatitis II: Collaborative Care
Assessment:
Community Based Intervention
Foundations of Community Mental Health Programs
Central to the success of community-based interventions is the...
Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
Clinical Trials: Overview
