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Cancer Control Research

Abstract

We propose to investigate the 5-year effects of breast cancer and its treatment in a cohort of women diagnosed at age 50 or younger who where originally identified through the SEER tumor registry in the San Francisco Bay Area. In Phase I, we will resurvey eligible women from the original cohort of 336 (80 percent response) to assess change in social, emotional and physical concerns and functioning. These findings will inform our proposed Phase II eight session psychoeducation group intervention. We anticipate a sample of 434 women to be randomly assigned to intervention or control. In the intervention arm, participants in each of the 22 groups will learn the latest scientific information about topical issues of relevance to breast cancer. As part of this strategy, the woman will learn (or be re-exposed) to coping skills training and have opportunities to practice these skills. The effect of the intervention will be evaluated using a pre-post-test design. Pre-test in-person interviews will assess health behaviors, physical and mental health, and improved mood; post-test interviews will be conducted by telephone. Because the two samples for the proposed study are population-based, they are representative not only of younger breast cancer survivors, but also the multi-ethnic population of this region of the country.