Cited by 41Sleep and related disordersCancer survivorship and careDigital Mental Health Interventions

Changes in sleep following internet-delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia in women treated for breast cancer: a 3-year follow-up assessment

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Sleep disturbances are common in women treated for breast cancer. We have previously shown that internet-delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (e-CBT-I) is an efficacious, low-cost treatment approach. Furthermore, research has shown that e-CBT-I can result in sustained improvements at 12 months post-treatment. However, given the complexity and long duration of post-treatment symptomatology in breast cancer patients, as well as the recommended use of antihormonal therapy for up to 10 years, it is relevant to investigate long-term (>12 months) changes in sleep following e-CBT-I in this population. In the present study, we report data from a 3-year long-term follow-up assessment after e-CBT-I. METHODS: Women treated for breast cancer with sleep disturbances (Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index [PSQI] global score >5) who had previously been enrolled in a randomized-controlled trial investigating the efficacy of e-CBT-I (n = 255), were invited to participate in a 3-year follow-up study. All women in the initial control group had also been granted access to e-CBT-I. Assessment included self-reported sleep quality (PSQI), insomnia severity (Insomnia Severity Index, ISI), cancer-related fatigue and symptoms of depression. Within-group changes in these outcomes from baseline to the 3-year long-term follow-up assessment were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 131 women (51%) participated in the 3-year follow-up study of which 77 (59%) were from the initial intervention group and 54 (41%) from the initial control group. For the pooled sample, within-group improvements from baseline to the 3-year follow-up assessment corresponding to large effect sizes were observed in sleep quality (Cohen's d = 1.0 95% CI [0.78, 1.21]) and insomnia severity (Cohen's d = 1.36 CI 95% [1.12, 1.59]). Similar changes were observed in cancer-related fatigue (Cohen's d = 0.48 CI 95% [0.30, 0.66]) and symptoms of depression (Cohen's d = 0.80 CI 95%. [0.60, 0.99]). The proportion of patients with scores above established cut-offs on the PSQI and the ISI were 56.1% and 29.8%, respectively. Within the initial intervention group, 15.6% evidenced relapse at the 3-year assessment. CONCLUSION: Overall, these results indicate that long-term sleep quality and insomnia severity following the use of e-CBT-in women treated for breast cancer is significantly lower than the pre-treatment levels. However, a substantial proportion of participants still evidence sleep disturbances.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.sleep.2022.04.020

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Authors
Amidi, A., Buskbjerg, C. R., Damholdt, M. F., Dahlgaard, J., Thorndike, F. P., Ritterband, L., & Zachariae, R.
Affiliations
  • Aarhus University (DK)
  • Pear Therapeutics (United States) (US)
  • University of Virginia (US)
Corresponding author
Amidi, Ali
Venue
Sleep Medicine
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2022-08
Volume
96
Pages
35-41
ISSN
1389-9457 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W4225143859
Cited by
41
References
35
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 1
FWCI
8.05
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Sleep Medicine (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • Kræftens Bekæmpelse (R48-A2585-11-S3)
  • TrygFonden (7-12.0736)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer survivorship and care
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
Keywords
insomnia, breast cancer survivors, sleep quality, long-term follow-up, cancer-related fatigue, depression, antihormonal therapy, sleep disorders, women with cancer, sustained treatment effects, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Insomnia Severity Index, cancer survivorship support services, digital mental health interventions, relapse prevention
MeSH terms
Breast Neoplasms, Fatigue, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders, Neoplasm Recurrence, Local, Sleep, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Treatment Outcome, Internet

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