Improving the quality of life for people with metastatic breast cancer

Questions To Ask Your Health Care Provider

• What supportive care would you recommend for me?
• How can I find a specialist in palliative care?
• How can I find a specialist in integrative medicine? In nutrition? In acupuncture?
• How will integrative or supportive care services affect my cancer treatment?
• Will my insurance cover palliative care services?

Open Clinical Trials

The following studies are looking at palliative care for people diagnosed with cancer.:

• NCT04733469: EMPOWER 3: Improving Palliative Care Health Literacy and Utilization (EMPOWER 3).  This study is designed to test an educational intervention to help patients understand palliative care, use it and feel better emotionally and physically. 
• NCT04989556: Technology-Enhanced Palliative Care for Advanced Cancer Patients. The goal of this study is to learn if the technology-enhanced palliative care symptom-monitoring program, when combined with in-person clinic visits and standard remote care visits (by phone or video call), helps increase the quality of life and care for patients with advanced cancer who are participating in phase 1 immunotherapy trials.
• NCT03767517: A Culturally-Based Palliative Care Tele-consult Program for Rural Southern Elders. This study will compare a culturally-based Tele-consult program with usual hospital care to determine whether a culturally-based PC Tele-consult program leads to lower symptom burden in hospitalized African American and white older adults with a life-limiting illness

 

The following studies are looking at integrative medical care for people diagnosed with cancer.

Multiple cancer types

• NCT03449511: Aromatherapy for Integrated Cancer Care. The purpose of this clinical trial is to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of aromatherapy in relief of commonly reported symptoms in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. 
• NCT04917796: The Effect of Electroacupuncture on Nerve Pain Caused by Chemotherapy (Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy. The purpose of this study is to learn if Electroacupuncture can improve peripheral neuropathy pain caused by chemotherapy in cancer survivors.
• NCT03581357: Mobile Mindfulness Meditation to Improve Neuropathy in Cancer Survivors. The studies a mobile app for cancer-related neuropathy in people with breast, colorectal, endometrial, pancreatic, prostate and other cancers, who have finished treatment and are experiencing neuropathy.
• NCT03897556: Effect of High-Dose Guarana And Cancer-Related Fatigue. This research will examine the effectiveness of a guaraná nutrition energy bar supplement on cancer-related fatigue based on scores from fatigue questionnaires. 
• EnergyPoints: A Mobile App Guiding Use of Acupressure for Cancer-related Fatigue and Sleep Disturbances: This study is looking at an app that uses acupressure to manage cancer-related fatigue and sleep disturbances. 

Breast cancer

• NCT02754752: Electroacupuncture Therapy in Reducing Chronic Pain in Patients After Breast Cancer Treatment. This will look at how well electroacupuncture therapy works in reducing chronic pain in patients following surgery for stage I-III breast cancer. Electroacupuncture therapy is a type of complementary integrative medicine in which pulses of weak electrical current are sent into certain points in the skin.
• NCT04837820: Effect of Acupuncture on Memory and Thinking Difficulties after Breast Cancer. The purpose of this study is to test whether acupuncture can improve cognitive difficulties and insomnia in survivors of breast cancer. 
• NCT02831582: Omega-3 Supplementation to Prevent Aromatase Inhibitor-Induced Toxicity in Patients With Stage I-III Breast Cancer. This study looks at omega-3 fatty acid supplementation to prevent aromatase inhibitor-induced side effects in patients with stage I-III breast cancer. 
• NCT01802346: Controlled Low Calorie Diet in Reducing Side Effects and Increasing Response to Chemotherapy in Patients With Breast or Prostate Cancer. This trial studies how well a low calorie diet works to lower side effects and increase chemotherapy response in people with breast or prostate cancer.

Gynecologic cancer

• NCT05053230: A Study Evaluating the Integrative Medicine at Home (IM@HOME) Program in People With Gynecologic Cancer. This study will look at whether the Integrative Medicine at Home (IM@Home) program can help reduce patients' symptoms (such as tiredness, pain, or insomnia). The IM@Home program offers virtual (online rather than in-person) group classes focusing on mind-body practice.

Prostate cancer

• NCT02871752: Reducing the Effects of Prostate Cancer Active Surveillance Stress, Uncertainty and Rumination Thru Engagement in Mindfulness Education. We will examine the efficacy of couples-based mindfulness-based stress reduction on positive and negative psychological responses to active surveillance with a sample of men on Active Surveillance and their spouses.
• NCT04519879: White Button Mushroom Sup for the Reduction of PSA in Pts With Biochemically Rec or Therapy Naive Fav Risk Prostate Cancer. This phase II trial studies how well white button mushroom supplement works in reducing prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in patients with prostate cancer that has come back (recurrent) or has favorable risk and has not undergone any therapy (therapy naive). 
• NCT01802346: Controlled Low Calorie Diet in Reducing Side Effects and Increasing Response to Chemotherapy in Patients With Breast or Prostate Cancer. This trial studies how well a low calorie diet works to lower side effects and increase chemotherapy response in people with breast or prostate cancer.