Decreasing Long-term Opioid Use in Cancer Survivors

NCT ID: NCT05067556

Last Updated: 2025-08-08

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: SUSPENDED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 18 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2021-12-20
• Study Completion Date: 2028-03-30

Brief Summary

This is a feasibility pilot trial assessing a behavioral intervention for chronic pain among disease-free cancer survivors to decrease long-term opioid dependence.

Detailed Description

To assess the feasibility and acceptability of implementing brief Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for chronic pain (ACT-CP) in a Survivorship clinic.

Conditions

Pain; Chronic Pain; Cancer Pain; Survivorship

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: OTHER
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Intervention

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Chronic Pain (ACT-CP)

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for chronic pain (ACT-CP)

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Delivered virtually via Zoom or via telephone on an individual level; 30-minute sessions led by a trained psychologist and occur weekly for 6 weeks.

Interventions

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for chronic pain (ACT-CP)

Delivered virtually via Zoom or via telephone on an individual level; 30-minute sessions led by a trained psychologist and occur weekly for 6 weeks.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Diagnosis of cancer of any type, currently in remission, having completed active primary therapy. Patients on oral adjuvant hormone therapy will still be eligible.
• Completed active therapy must have been curative in intent (for example stage IV cancer patients such as head and neck cancer patients treated with curative intent are eligible).
• Self-reported cancer pain for >= 3 months
• Opioid use >= 5MME/day (morphine milligram equivalents) as prescribed by physician for cancer-related pain for at least 6 months beyond completion of their cancer treatment
• VCUHealth system patient

Exclusion Criteria

• History of opioid use prior to cancer diagnosis
• Anyone with prior history of substance use disorder or currently enrolled in a methadone program
• Anyone with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder
• Current utilization of psychotherapy services for pain, depression, anxiety, and/or PTSD
• Cognitive concerns that would prevent meaningful engagement in treatment
• Inability to converse in English
• Lack of working telephone and Internet connection (must have at least one or the other)
• Anyone found to have progression of cancer
• Anyone diagnosed with cancer recurrence or new cancer during their study period
• Documented diagnosis of or positive screen for current substance use disorder (score >5 on the Drug Abuse Screening Test-10 [DAST-10])
• Anyone scoring >=8 on ORT indicating very high risk for opioid abuse

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Virginia Commonwealth University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Susan Hong, MD, MPH

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Virginia Commonwealth University

Locations

Virginia Commonwealth University

Richmond, Virginia, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

MCC-21-18366

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id