Effect of Internet-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Psychological Distress and Quality of Life Among Breast Cancer Survivors: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

A partir d'une revue systématique de la littérature (10 études, 1 409 patientes), cette méta-analyse évalue l'efficacité de thérapies cognitivo-comportementales dispensées sur internet pour soulager les symptômes de détresse et améliorer la qualité de vie de patientes ayant survécu à un cancer du sein

Psycho-Oncology, Volume 33, Numéro 11, Page e70014, 2024, résumé

Résumé en anglais

Objectives : This meta-analysis was to critically evaluate the effectiveness of Internet-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (ICBT) on psychological distress and quality of life in breast cancer survivors.

Methods: A search was conducted across eleven databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, Scopus, ProQuest, CINAHL, CBM, CNKI, VIP and Wanfang) to identify relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published from databases inception to September 2023. Two reviewers independently conducted study screening, data extraction, and quality assessment of the included studies. Review Manager 5.4 and Stata 18.0 were utilized for analysis.

Results: Ten studies with 1409 patients were included. Meta-analysis indicated that ICBT alleviated anxiety [SMD = −0.34, 95% CI (−0.64, −0.04), p = 0.03] and depression [SMD = −0.43, 95% CI (−0.76, −0.09), p = 0.01] in breast cancer patients. Therapist-guided ICBT outperformed self-guided ICBT, with interventions lasting ≤ 9 weeks better than > 9 weeks, and module quantity didn't affect the results. Additionally, ICBT significantly improved quality of life [SMD = 0.37, 95% CI (0.21, 0.52), p < 0.001], yet didn't reduce fatigue [SMD = −0.13, 95% CI (−0.59, 0.34), p = 0.60], insomnia [MD = −2.24, 95% CI (−5.77, 1.28), p = 0.21], or fear of progression [SMD = −0.10, 95% CI (−0.31, 0.11), p = 0.34].

Conclusions: ICBT, especially therapist-guided and lasting for ≤ 9 weeks, can effectively relieve anxiety and depression, as well as enhance breast cancer patients' quality of life. Nevertheless, it fails to improve fatigue, insomnia, or fear of progression. High-quality, large-sample studies must be conducted in the future for further validation.