Therapeutic intervention to help distressed radiotherapy patients

A2003068

Leeds is a regional cancer care centre offering care to adults across the Yorkshire region. One key form of cancer treatment accessed is radiotherapy. Radiotherapy is used both within a curative and palliative (symptom management) capacity. Cancer patients accessing radiotherapy can often experience psychological distress in relation to undergoing this treatment. This can be in relation to previous difficult life experiences, phobias or mental health conditions. The radiotherapy patient support team are currently supporting patients using low level psychological interventions, such as relaxation techniques, empathic listening and reassurance. The radiotherapy patient support team successfully support the majority of distressed patients to access radiotherapy, but some patients remain unable to access radiotherapy due to high levels of distress. This can be highly distressing for the patient themselves, that they have not been able to access the recommended treatment, as well as for the families and loved ones of patients who are aware that their loved one has not been able to engage in the recommended cancer treatment.  
 
A new psychological intervention, the Flash-lite technique, has been developed as a brief stand-alone intervention to help with distress reduction. Previous research into the standardised flash technique shows that it reduces intrusive trauma symptoms with immediate effect without the need for time-intensive intervention. The Flash-lite technique has then since been designed as an adapted version of the Flash technique for use outside of broader psychological therapy. This grant will provide training and supervision for the radiotherapy patient support team in the new Flash-lite technique, which will allow them to help distressed patients access their radiotherapy treatment in a quicker timescale. 

Lead Researcher	Dr Lucy Holmes
Host Organisation	Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Grant Amount	£2,280.00
Start Date	31/07/2024
Estimated Duration	18 months
Impact Areas	Health Inequalities - Cancer Care
Tags/key notes	Cancer and neoplasms