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Cancer Control Research

Abstract

The main objective of this application is to enable the investigator to initiate a cancer prevention and control research program to study interventions that promote psychological adjustment, health behavior and breast screening in first-degree relatives (FDRs) of breast cancer patients. To achieve this, the investigator will provide a brief personalized health promotion counseling (PHPC) intervention. The PHPC intervention will involve personalized feedback regarding current levels of physical activity and personalized counseling in the adoption of a regular regimen of physical activity (e.g., 30 minutes at least 5 times/week). The effects of the PHPC intervention will be compared to the effects of a general health information (GHI) intervention in a randomized trial. The subjects will be 276 women ages 40 and older who have a family history of breast cancer in at least one female FDR. Subjects will participate in the baseline telephone survey that will assess physical activity, psychological well-being, and breast screening behaviors. Interventions will be delivered during a two-hour individual visit with a health educator. Three- and 12-month follow-up assessments will be used to assess the short- and long-term impact of PHPC vs. GHI on psychological well-being, physical activity, and breast screening adherence. Also, the investigator will determine which pretreatment psychological characteristics and sociodemographic variables impact how the PHPC intervention is received, thus influencing how PHPC impacts the outcome variables. Finally, path modeling will be used to test the mechanisms by which PHPC impacts on psychological and behavioral outcomes. The information obtained from this project should be applicable to groups at high risk for developing other cancers (e.g., colon cancer).