A Manualized Post-Traumatic Growth Intervention for People With Cancer in Greece - IC-Growth

Cancer can be a very traumatic experience for the people affected and the majority of the psychological literature focuses on this. Less proliferated and researched is the increasingly recognized fact that as a result of struggling with such traumatic adversities, some people experience what is known as post-traumatic growth (PTG). PTG not only allows them to overcome their trauma (e.g., impact of cancer) and return to pre-diagnosis functioning (e.g., health, wellbeing, employment) but also results in them going over and above their previous state (e.g., increased resilience). This renders PTG an important phenomenon that could be enhanced as part of the support people with cancer receive. IC-Growth has two interconnected paths, namely a research one and another of health policy and best practice recommendations. On the first path, is a sequence of three studies, starting with a systematic review, followed by a cross-sectional study and concludes with a randomized control trial (RCT). The systematic review and close collaboration with experts (e.g., patient associations) will lead to the development of a novel manual to facilitate PTG in groups of people with cancer. The cross-sectional study will explore relationships between variables (e.g., PTG, quality of life, biological variables, illness perceptions, distress, anxiety, depression) in people with cancer (n = 150-180). Lastly, the RCT will evaluate the intervention's effects among three different groups (breast, colorectal, and head and neck cancers, n = 50-60 per group). On the other path, is the development of health policy and best practice recommendations regarding the psychosocial support of people with cancer in Greece. The project's results will be disseminated to stakeholders who provide support to people with cancer (e.g., oncologists, surgeons, psychologists, psychiatrists), through professional associations, a conference on "Psychosocial Support in Oncology", and publications in scientific journals. Overall, IC-Growth is a multidisciplinary project (i.e., psychology, medical, patient organizations, health policy) and joins the clinical, research and policy fields together to workable actions leading to empowering the wider community of people with cancer and improving their care.