Abstract PO-060: The Conexiones Program: A pilot feasibility study of a cancer parenting program for Latina mothers living with cancer in the U.S.-Mexico border region
Authors: Palacios Rebecca , Reyes Clara , Griffith Kristin 
Published: January 2022

Background: Mothers diagnosed with cancer and their children experience significant distress. Enhancing Connections (EC) is a cancer parenting program that improves outcomes in mother and child by adding to the mother's self-care and parenting skills. Validated with non-Hispanic White mothers of upper socioeconomic status (SES), EC was culturally adapted to serve low SES Latina mothers diagnosed with cancer and their children and renamed Conexiones. Purpose: This study tested the short-term impact of the Conexiones program on depressed mood, anxiety, and parenting competencies among diagnosed Latina mothers, and their children's behavioral-emotional adjustment to her cancer. It also examined the feasibility of delivering the telephone-based Conexiones program. Methods: Eligibility criteria included being a Latina woman diagnosed with early-stage cancer of any type (stages 0-III; excluded some skin cancers) in the last two years with a dependent child 5-17-years-old. Mothers received 5 Conexiones sessions at two-week intervals in her preferred language. Outcome measures assessed the mother's anxiety/depression and parenting skills, self-efficacy, and quality. Anxiety/depression and behavioral problems for her child were also measured. Participants completed all self-reported assessments at baseline and three months post-baseline. The paired within-group comparison of change from baseline to three-month-post-baseline used the Wilcoxon non-parametric p-value. Results: Fifteen mothers completed all five education sessions and the 3-month follow-up survey. Mothers were diagnosed with breast, thyroid, and gynecologic cancers. Analysis revealed statistically significant increases in parenting self-efficacy and parenting quality (all p values &lt; 0.05). Marginally significant improvements in maternal mood were also found (p = 0.09). Changes in maternal anxiety and the child's behavioral and psychosocial adjustment also appeared to improve, although they did not approximate statistical significance, possibly due to an underpowered analysis. Regarding feasibility, a review of audio-recorded intervention sessions revealed high dosage and fidelity. Participants were able to complete the telephone sessions and homework in between sessions and reported liking and benefiting from the program in an exit interview. A participant reported multifaceted burdens (e.g., homelessness; domestic abuse; loss of health coverage) in addition to her cancer requiring the development of new study protocols. Conclusions: In addition to demonstrating positive preliminary psychosocial outcomes for diagnosed Latina mothers, the pilot study was instrumental in directing further refinement of the Conexiones program, expanding the program's cancer resource booklet with social services needed by low SES Latina survivors, and helping NMSU establish the research infrastructure needed to complete a more rigorous clinical trial.

Citation Format: Rebecca Palacios, Clara Reyes, Kristin Griffith. The Conexiones Program: A pilot feasibility study of a cancer parenting program for Latina mothers living with cancer in the U.S.-Mexico border region [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: 14th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2021 Oct 6-8. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-060.