Feasibility and Acceptability of Digital Legacy-Making: An Innovative Story-Telling Intervention for Adults With Cancer.
Susan DeSanto-Madeya, Jennifer Tjia, Christina Fitch and 1 others
PMID 33167669WHAT IT FOUND
16 adults with advanced cancer found a digital legacy video interview acceptable and low-burden.
Quality of life scores did not change, except for a small drop in distress thermometer depression ratings. This pilot tested feasibility, not efficacy.
Key findings
01Participants rated the study burden as low (1.5 out of 10) and reported high acceptability, with a mean score of 9.0 for recommending the interview to a friend with cancer.
02There was no statistically significant change in primary quality of life measures (FACT-G, HADS, Patient Dignity Inventory) after the intervention.
03The only significant change was a decrease in depression scores on the Emotional Thermometer, but this did not correspond with improvement on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was a small pilot (n=16) and not powered to detect changes in quality of life outcomes. Participants were highly functional (mode ECOG 1) and mostly white and married, limiting generalizability to more diverse or frailer populations. There was no control group, so improvements or lack thereof cannot be attributed solely to the intervention versus time or other factors. The significant change in depression on the Emotional Thermometer was not supported by the HADS, suggesting inconsistent findings across measures.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that digital legacy-making improves quality of life or reduces anxiety and depression based on this paper. The study was a small pilot designed to test feasibility, and the primary quality of life measures showed no significant change.