Virtual Vs Telephone Education in Radiotherapy

NCT07255196 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 25-5883
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 130
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to compare whether the use of videoconferencing in breast cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy is better for pre-treatment education than telephone calls. The main question it aims to answer is in breast cancer patient receiving radiotherapy, does videoconferencing, compared to telephone calls for pre-treatment education result in decreased procedural fears and concerns? The investigators hypothesize that the use of videoconferencing for pre-treatment radiotherapy education will decrease breast cancer patients' procedural fears and concerns. Researchers will compare the current standard of care in a 30 minute radiation therapist led pre-treatment education call to the intervention of a 45 minute radiation therapist led videoconferencing call to see if the intervention reduces patient procedural fears and concerns, anxiety levels, and has higher patient satisfaction. Participants will be asked to complete questionnaires at three time points: 1. Baseline - at time of study consent. 2. CT-Simulation - after their radiotherapy CT-Simulation appointment. 3. Day 1 Treatment - after their first day of radiotherapy treatment.

Conditions

Radiotherapy; Patient Education

Keywords

Virutal Care; Videoconferencing; Patient Education

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Cancer Treatment Survey Procedural Fears & Concerns Subscale (CaTS-PC)

  11 total questions relating to patients procedural fears and concerns on a Likert-scale (1-5), mean scores are taken from this to generate a procedural fear and concern level out of 5, with lower scores indicating less procedural fears and concerns

  Measured at three time points (T1-T3). T1: Baseline, T2: exactly after patient CT-Simulation and T3: exactly after patient first day of radiotherapy

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-A)

  Measured at three time points (T1-T3). T1: Baseline, T2: exactly after patient CT-Simulation and T3: exactly after patient first day of radiotherapy

• Satisfaction with Pre-Treatment Radiation Therapy Education Survey

  Delivered at T2 - exactly after CT-Simulation

Study Arms (2)

Standard Care Arm

NO INTERVENTION

30 minute radiation therapist-led pre-treatment education with a telephone call to explain upcoming radiotherapy treatment, side-effects, appointment logistics and answer patient questions

Videoconferencing Arm

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

45 minute radiation therapist-led pre-treatment education with a videoconferencing call to explain upcoming radiotherapy treatment, side-effects, appointment logistics and answer patient questions

Device: Videoconferencing Software for Pre-Treatment Education

Interventions

Videoconferencing Software for Pre-Treatment Education DEVICE

Videoconferencing software used for pre-treatment education with face-to-face, patient-to-provider communication using a slide deck with images to help with pre-treatment educational material for radiotherapy

Videoconferencing Arm

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• years or older
• Access to an internet connected device with a microphone and camera
• Able to communicate in English with/without a translator
• Receiving radical breast cancer radiotherapy

You may not qualify if:

• Previous radiotherapy treatment

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University Health Network, Toronto: lead

Study Sites (1)

Princess Margaret Cancer Center

Toronto, Ontario, M5G 2C4, Canada

RECRUITING

Central Study Contacts

Michael Velec, PhD

CONTACT

416-946-4501; michael.velec@uhn.ca

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Clinician Scientist - Radiation Therapist

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 17, 2025
• First Posted: November 28, 2025
• Study Start: December 20, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): July 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2026
• Last Updated: April 28, 2026

Record last verified: 2025-11

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CA (1)