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Annual Report 2020

Division of Psycho-Oncology

Asao Ogawa, Ken Shimizu, Yoshihisa Matsumoto, Masanori Enokido, Yusei Iwata, Masataka Furukawa, Saaya Soejima, Yurika Nakamura, Nanao Sayama, Kiyoko Otani, Yasuko Uchimura, Kana Toyonaga, Masako Ikeda, Nao Noguchi, Aki Kobayashi

Introduction

 The aim of the Division of Psycho-Oncology is to develop mind-centered interventions to restore, maintain, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families throughout cancer treatment and for end-of-life care. The division has focused on developing effective interventions for delirium, dementia, and depression in cancer patients as well as on determining the mechanism underlying the relationship between cancer and the mind through a combination of neuropsychiatric, psychosocial, and behavioral sciences.

Research activities

1) Development of multidisciplinary management program for delirium

 Delirium, defined as an acute disorder of attention and global cognitive function, is a common, serious, and potentially preventable source of morbidity and mortality for hospitalized older persons. Primary prevention, i.e., preventing delirium before it develops, is the most effective strategy for reducing delirium. We evaluated whether the DELirium Team Approach (DELTA) program—a systematic management program aimed at screening high-risk groups and preventing delirium—would improve the quality of care in patients hospitalized with cancer. A retrospective before–after study was conducted during a pre- and post-intervention period at a Japanese hospital providing specialized treatments for cancer. A total of 4180 inpatients were evaluated before the implementation of the DELTA program and 3797 inpatients were evaluated after implementation. After the program implementation, the incidence of delirium decreased from 7.1% to 4.3% (odds ratio [OR], 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.42–0.64). The incidence of adverse events, including falls or self-extubation, also decreased. These data suggest that this simple cost-effective program is feasible and implementable as routine care in busy wards. Data collection of the cluster randomized controlled trial has been completed and data is being analyzed to verify the program effect.

2) Development of a support program for patients with dementia in acute hospital settings as a multidisciplinary approach

 The objective is to assess the decision-making capacity in patients newly diagnosed with lung cancer, clinical factors associated with impaired capacity, and physicians’ perceptions of patients’ decision-making capacity.

 We recruited 122 newly diagnosed patients with lung cancer; 114 completed the assessment. All patients were receiving a combination of treatments (e.g., chemotherapy, chemo-radiotherapy, or targeted therapy). The decision-making capacity was assessed using the MacArthur Competence Tool for Treatment. Physicians’ perceptions were compared with the ascertainments. Twenty-seven (24%, 95% CI, 16–31) patients were judged to have incapacity. Logistic regression identified frailty (OR, 3.51; 95% CI, 1.13–10.8) and cognitive impairment (OR, 5.45; 95% CI, 1.26–23.6) as the factors associated with decision-making incapacity. Brain metastasis, emphysema, and depression were not associated with decision-making incapacity. A substantial proportion of patients diagnosed with lung cancer show impairments in their capacity to make medical decisions. Assessment of cognitive impairment and frailty may provide appropriate decision-making frameworks to act in the best interest of the patients.

 We developed educational materials for nurses to provide decision support in the important aspects of the treatment for elderly cancer patients.

Education

 Increases in the number of individuals diagnosed with cancer each year, due in large part to aging and growth of the population, as well as improving survival rates, have led to an ever-increasing number of elderly cancer patients with cognitive function deterioration. Thus, we conduct research into development and validation of geriatric assessment such as mini-cog, comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) etc., and evaluation of effectiveness of multidisciplinary interventions among hospitalized cancer patients with delirium or dementia.

List of papers published in 2020

Journal

1. Nakazawa Y, Takeuchi E, Miyashita M, Sato K, Ogawa A, Kinoshita H, Kizawa Y, Morita T, Kato M. A Population-Based Mortality Follow-Back Survey Evaluating Good Death for Cancer and Noncancer Patients: A Randomized Feasibility Study. J Pain Symptom Manage, 61:42-53.e2, 2021

2. Amano K, Maeda I, Ishiki H, Miura T, Hatano Y, Tsukuura H, Taniyama T, Matsumoto Y, Matsuda Y, Kohara H, Morita T, Mori M. Effects of enteral nutrition and parenteral nutrition on survival in patients with advanced cancer cachexia: Analysis of a multicenter prospective cohort study. Clin Nutr, 40:1168-1175, 2021

3. Mori M, Morita T, Matsuda Y, Yamada H, Kaneishi K, Matsumoto Y, Matsuo N, Odagiri T, Aruga E, Watanabe H, Tatara R, Sakurai H, Kimura A, Katayama H, Suga A, Nishi T, Shirado AN, Watanabe T, Kuchiba A, Yamaguchi T, Iwase S. How successful are we in relieving terminal dyspnea in cancer patients? A real-world multicenter prospective observational study. Support Care Cancer, 28:3051-3060, 2020

4. Nakanishi M, Ogawa A, Nishida A. Availability of home palliative care services and dying at home in conditions needing palliative care: A population-based death certificate study. Palliat Med, 34:504-512, 2020

5. Matsuda Y, Maeda I, Morita T, Yamauchi T, Sakashita A, Watanabe H, Kaneishi K, Amano K, Iwase S, Ogawa A, Yoshiuchi K. Reversibility of delirium in Ill-hospitalized cancer patients: Does underlying etiology matter? Cancer Med, 9:19-26, 2020

6. Maeda I, Ogawa A, Yoshiuchi K, Akechi T, Morita T, Oyamada S, Yamaguchi T, Imai K, Sakashita A, Matsumoto Y, Uemura K, Nakahara R, Iwase S. Safety and effectiveness of antipsychotic medication for delirium in patients with advanced cancer: A large-scale multicenter prospective observational study in real-world palliative care settings. Gen Hosp Psychiatry, 67:35-41, 2020

7. Katayama K, Ishikawa D, Miyagi Y, Takemiya S, Okamoto N, Ogawa A. Qualitative analysis of cancer telephone consultations: Differences in the counseling needs of Japanese men and women. Patient Educ Couns, 2020

8. Hashiguchi Y, Muro K, Saito Y, Ito Y, Ajioka Y, Hamaguchi T, Hasegawa K, Hotta K, Ishida H, Ishiguro M, Ishihara S, Kanemitsu Y, Kinugasa Y, Murofushi K, Nakajima TE, Oka S, Tanaka T, Taniguchi H, Tsuji A, Uehara K, Ueno H, Yamanaka T, Yamazaki K, Yoshida M, Yoshino T, Itabashi M, Sakamaki K, Sano K, Shimada Y, Tanaka S, Uetake H, Yamaguchi S, Yamaguchi N, Kobayashi H, Matsuda K, Kotake K, Sugihara K. Japanese Society for Cancer of the Colon and Rectum (JSCCR) guidelines 2019 for the treatment of colorectal cancer. Int J Clin Oncol, 25:1-42, 2020

9. Matsuoka H, Iwase S, Miyaji T, Kawaguchi T, Ariyoshi K, Oyamada S, Satomi E, Ishiki H, Hasuo H, Sakuma H, Tokoro A, Matsuda Y, Tahara K, Otani H, Ohtake Y, Tsukuura H, Matsumoto Y, Hasegawa Y, Kataoka Y, Otsuka M, Sakai K, Nakura M, Morita T, Yamaguchi T, Koyama A. Predictors of duloxetine response in patients with neuropathic cancer pain: a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial-JORTC-PAL08 (DIRECT) study. Support Care Cancer, 28:2931-2939, 2020

10. Fujisawa D, Umemura S, Okizaki A, Satomi E, Yamaguchi T, Miyaji T, Mashiko T, Kobayashi N, Kinoshita H, Mori M, Morita T, Uchitomi Y, Goto K, Ohe Y, Matsumoto Y. Nurse-led, screening-triggered, early specialised palliative care intervention programme for patients with advanced lung cancer: study protocol for a multicentre randomised controlled trial. BMJ Open, 10:e037759, 2020

11. Tagami K, Kawaguchi T, Miura T, Yamaguchi T, Matsumoto Y, Watanabe YS, Uehara Y, Okizaki A, Inoue A, Morita T, Kinoshita H. The association between health-related quality of life and achievement of personalized symptom goal. Support Care Cancer, 28:4737-4743, 2020