Helping Families Support Loved Ones with Advanced Cancer in Making Health Decisions
Official title: Decision Support Training for Advanced Cancer Family Caregivers: The CASCADE Factorial Trial
Funded at University of Alabama at Birmingham · NIH-11112423 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project offers a program to teach family caregivers of people with advanced cancer how to best support their loved ones when making important health choices.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Alabama at Birmingham NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Birmingham, United States) |
| Project start | July 15, 2021 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $528,538 |
| NIH project number | 5R01CA262039-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11112423 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This program is designed for family caregivers of adults (21+ years old) living with advanced cancer, especially those in underserved communities.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without a primary family caregiver involved in their health decisions, or those not dealing with advanced cancer, may not directly benefit from this specific program.
What this research studies
When someone has advanced cancer, their family often helps them make big health decisions about treatments, care locations, and palliative care. This project aims to prepare these family caregivers to be effective partners in these discussions. We are testing a program called CASCADE, which uses a lay navigator through telehealth to teach caregivers communication skills and how to use decision guides. The goal is to help patients make choices that truly match their values and preferences, reducing distress for both patients and their families.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this program could help patients with advanced cancer make more informed decisions aligned with their wishes, while also reducing stress for their family caregivers.
How similar studies have gone: While few palliative care interventions have specifically focused on enhancing caregiver decision support skills, this program builds upon prior successful early palliative care caregiving interventions.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Odom, James N. — University of Alabama at Birmingham
- Study coordinator: Odom, James N.
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Helping Advanced Cancer Patients and Families Plan Ahead with a Resilience-Building Web Program
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Web program to help people with advanced cancer and their caregivers talk about future medical wishes
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Psycho-Spiritual Support for Patients with Advanced Cancer and Their Family Caregivers
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Caregivers and Patients Support for Advanced Cancer
A doctor-in-training is developing a telehealth five-session program to help patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers manage their psychosocial needs and quality of life.
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Psychospiritual support for people with advanced cancer and their family caregivers
A four-session family-focused meditation program delivered by videoconference aims to help people with advanced cancer and their family caregivers cope with depression and spiritual distress.
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Early palliative support by trained lay coaches for caregivers of people with advanced cancer
This program offers early palliative support from trained lay coaches to help under-resourced family and friend caregivers of people newly diagnosed with advanced cancer.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.