Effectiveness of Internet-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Patients With Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
Abstract
Background Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) is a relatively new therapy with unknown effectiveness in patients with cancer. In addition, therapist-guided and self-guided ICBT patient-specific outcomes for cancer patients remain to be explored. Objective To explore the effects of ICBT on psychological outcomes, physical outcomes, and daily life outcomes in patients with cancer. Methods Electronic databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, APA PsycINFO, ProQuest, and ClinicalTrials.gov were searched for relevant studies published from their inception to October 2022. Five GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations) considerations were used to assess the quality of relevant evidence. Data analysis was performed via RevMan 5.4 (The Cochrane Collaboration, London, United Kingdom) and Stata 15.0 (StataCorp, College Station, Texas). Results Three thousand two hundred forty-nine participants from 20 studies were included in the meta-analysis. Statistically significant effects of ICBT were found on psychological distress, quality of life (QOL), anxiety, and depression, after the intervention. A separate analysis of follow-up data showed that ICBT had a sustainable effect on psychological distress, anxiety, and depression. Subgroup analyses showed that therapist-guided ICBT was more effective for psychological distress and QOL. Conclusion Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy can improve symptom managemen…
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There are existing systematic and metareviews on web-based interventions for cancer care/aftercare and on fear of cancer recurrence interventions more generally.
“There are a number of existing systematic and metareviews on web-based interventions for cancer care/aftercare [9–17] and on fear of cancer recurrence interventions more generally [18–21].”
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- Authors
- Yu, S., Liu, Y., Cao, M., Tian, Q., Xu, M., Yu, L., Yang, S., & Zhang, W.
- Affiliations
- Jilin University (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Zhang, Wei
- Venue
- Cancer Nursing
- Published
- 2023-08-08
- Volume
- 48
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- e140-e149
- ISSN
- 0162-220X (ISSN-L)
- 1538-9804
- OpenAlex
- W4385658289
- Cited by
- 22
- References
- 33
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 6
- FWCI
- 0.75
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Cancer Nursing (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer survivorship and care
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Telemedicine and Telehealth Implementation
- Keywords
- internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy, cancer patients, psychological distress, anxiety, depression, quality of life, fatigue, fear of recurrence, symptom management, psychological outcomes
- MeSH terms
- Internet-Based Intervention, Humans, Neoplasms, Quality of Life, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Treatment Outcome, Internet
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