Impact on distress and self-compassion among women with cancer related lymphoedema following a writing exercise.

The purpose of the proposed study is to evaluate whether a self-compassion-focused writing exercise, (“My Changed Body”), can decrease levels of distress among women with lymphoedema Who is it for? You may be eligible to join this study if you are a woman aged 18 years or over and have cancer related lymphoedema. Study details Study participants will be allocated by chance to one of the two groups. One group will receive general lymphoedema information as per usual care. This contains information about lymphoedema prevalence, reducing the risk, and self management strategies . The second group will receive a writing exercise. The writing exercise consists of 6 steps (total 30 minutes) with structured prompts that will encourage the writer to be kind; to consider how they would support a friend in the same circumstances; and to look at their feelings from a broader perspective Study questionnaires will be completed up to six months past intervention completion to assess self-compassion and sexual functioning. This is a significant project because lymphoedema is a prevalent side-effect of cancer treatment, is incurable and leads to concerning levels of psychological morbidity, which may be alleviated by a simple, low-cost writing exercise.