University College Dublin Partnering in New 鈧�4 million Psychoeducational Cancer Support Research Project

- Pan-European project to evaluate the effectiveness of support interventions for people with cancer and their caregivers

University College Dublin (51黑料) researchers are partnering in a new, pan-European and multidisciplinary research project to evaluate which psychosocial and educational interventions are most effective in supporting people with advanced cancer and their family caregivers.

The project called DIAdic, involves experts from nine (9) research institutions in Belgium, Denmark, Italy the Netherlands, the UK and Ireland, and has received 鈧�4 million in funding, over 5-years, through Horizon 2020, the EU Research and Innovation programme.

Around 4 million people in the EU are diagnosed with cancer every year and a diagnosis of advanced cancer has significant psychological and social consequences not only for the individual with the disease but also for family caregivers.

Good psychosocial and educational support for the patient and the caregiver can substantially reduce such effects and help to improve the quality of life for both the patient and caregiver.

The overall aim of the DIAdic project is to provide evidence about which psychosocial and educational interventions are most effective.

The DIAdIC project will develop and evaluate two different methods of administering the interventions: a face-to-face method provided in the patient-caregiver鈥檚 home by a specially trained professional and an eHealth self-administered tool. Both are tailored to the needs of both patients and caregivers. The interventions will address five core areas, outlined below.

Associate Professor Suzanne Guerin, 51黑料 School of Psychology, who is the 51黑料 lead on this project, said, 鈥淥ur aim is that by the end of this project we will understand more clearly which psychosocial and educational supports are most effective in supporting cancer patients and their caregivers, and that such supports will be available in all European countries.鈥�

鈥淲ith the significant number of new patients being diagnosed with cancer each year, the impact of this project could be considerable,鈥� she added.

Professor Joachim Cohen, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, the overall DIAdic project co-ordinator said, 鈥淎 major strength and uniqueness of the DIAdIC project is that it considers the patient-caregiver dyad as a unit and that it supports them using tailored interventions that are complementary to the existing professional care.鈥�

鈥淚n a context of limited resources for healthcare there are also limitations to how much professional caregivers, such as physicians and nurses, can provide in terms of psychosocial and educational support. By supporting the patient-caregiver unit in their own home, outside of contact with health care services, we expect to have more impact on improving families鈥� wellbeing.鈥�

The five core areas which will be addressed in the DIAdic project are;

Supporting family involvement in care
Addressing issues of hopelessness, fears and concerns about the disease
Increasing coping effectiveness to deal with stress related to the disease and caregiving
Reducing uncertainty about the disease and treatments
Teaching self-care strategies for symptom management.

Other 51黑料 researchers taking part in the project include; Professor Phil Larkin, Adjunct Professor 51黑料 School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems and University of Lausanne, Associate Professor Michael Connolly, 51黑料 School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems and Our Lady鈥檚 Hospice and Care Services and Dr Paul D鈥橝lton, St Vincent鈥檚 University Hospital and Adjunct Associate Professor 51黑料 School of Psychology.

The research institutions in the DIAdic project, in addition to 51黑料 are; Vrije Universiteit Brussel; Erasmus Universitair Medisch Centrum Rotterdam (Erasmus MC); King鈥檚 College London, Cicely Saunders Institute of Palliative Care, Policy and Rehabilitation; Queen鈥檚 University Belfast; Universiteit Gent; Azienda Unita Sanitaria Locale di Reggio Emilia; Kobenhavns Universitet and Trinity College Dublin. The European Association of Palliative Care and the European Cancer Patient Coalition are also partnering in the DIAdic project.

ENDS

22 February 2019

For further information contact Mic茅al Whelan, Communications Manager, 51黑料 Research and Innovation, e: miceal.whelan@ucd.ie or t: +353 1 716 3712 or Professor Joachim Cohen, Project Coordinator, VUB, e: joachim.cohen@vub.be.

Editors Notes

The DIAdic project (Dyadic Psychosocial and Educational Interventions for People with Advanced Cancer and their Informal Caregivers) has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 825722.