Healing Touch in Treating Patients Receiving Chemotherapy for Acute Myeloid Leukemia or Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia
Condition: Fatigue; Leukemia; Psychosocial Effects of Cancer and Its Treatment
MeSH terms: Leukemia; Fatigue
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      RATIONALE: Supportive care, such as healing touch, may improve quality of life in patients
      receiving chemotherapy for acute leukemia.

      PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how well healing touch works in treating patients
      receiving chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia or acute lymphocytic leukemia.
    

Detailed description: 
      OBJECTIVES:

        -  Determine the feasibility of conducting a randomized controlled trial, in terms of
           recruiting and retaining participants, to a study of healing touch (HT) as supportive
           care in patients receiving chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia or acute
           lymphoblastic leukemia.

        -  Examine potential barriers to participation and ascertain reasons for study drop-outs in
           these patients.

        -  Demonstrate whether these patients will comply with treatment sessions and remain in the
           study.

        -  Obtain preliminary data on the effectiveness of HT on psychological distress and
           treatment-related symptoms focusing on fatigue and sleep disturbances in these patients.

        -  Determine if the HT protocol needs to be refined, modified, or eliminated, based on
           pilot participant feedback, for a randomized clinical trial.

      OUTLINE: This is a pilot study.

      Within 1 week of admission to the hospital, patients are interviewed by a research assistant
      about previous use of complementary or alternative medicine therapies, knowledge of healing
      touch (HT), previous experience with HT, willingness to participate in a study of HT for
      acute leukemia patients, and willingness to be randomized in a HT study. The first 12
      patients interested in undergoing HT undergo a 30-minute session of HT therapy 3 times a week
      during weeks 2, 3, and 4 of induction or reinduction chemotherapy. Patients are also asked to
      rate current distress, pain, fatigue, and nausea before and after the second HT session
      during weeks 2, 3, and 4. Patients also complete self-report questionnaires at baseline,
      during week 5 of induction or reinduction chemotherapy or prior to discharge from the
      hospital, and during the first week of consolidation chemotherapy (approximately week 9-13).

      PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 40 patients will be accrued for this study.
    

Intervention name(s): therapeutic touch
Intervention type(s): Procedure
Intervention description(s): administration of healing touch in 30 minute sessions
Intervention model: Single Group Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Supportive Care
Keywords: fatigue; psychosocial effects of cancer and its treatment; adult acute myeloid leukemia with 11q23 (MLL) abnormalities; adult acute myeloid leukemia with inv(16)(p13;q22); adult acute myeloid leukemia with t(15;17)(q22;q12); adult acute myeloid leukemia with t(16;16)(p13;q22); adult acute myeloid leukemia with t(8;21)(q22;q22); recurrent adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia; recurrent adult acute myeloid leukemia; untreated adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia; untreated adult acute myeloid leukemia