Component and Couple Analysis of Cancer Communication

CHESS, the Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System is an innovative technology that provides information, social support and skills training to women with breast cancer. Previous CHESS clinical trials found improved patient outcomes but little is known about what services in CHESS produce those results. This study will examine whether breast cancer patient outcomes change when conceptually distinct CHESS services (information, social support, and skills training) are systematically added to a patients treatment resources.

Primary Aims:

• Determine the relative efficacies of different types of cancer communication treatments when they are presented alone or in combination
• Determine routes or processes via which these elements work
• Determine for whom the different treatment types work best.

Inclusion Criteria:

Eligibility for this protocol is as follows:

• All subjects must be within 2 months of their primary breast cancer diagnosis,
• All subjects must be at least 18 years of age,
• All subjects must be able to read and write English at the 6th-grade level
• Not homeless