Objective: Many young adult female cancer survivors need to use reproductive medicine, surrogacy, or adoption to have a child. This study pilot tested Roadmap to Parenthood, a web-based, self-guided decision aid and planning tool for family building after cancer (disease agnostic).
Methods: A single-arm pilot study tested feasibility, acceptability, and obtained effect size estimates of the Roadmap tool. Participants, recruited via hospital-based and social media strategies, completed a baseline survey (T1), accessed the Roadmap tool (website), then completed surveys at one- and 3-months (T2 and T3, respectively). Feasibility and acceptability were evaluated with rates of eligibility, enrollment, and survey completion, and feedback. Pairwise t-tests and repeated measures ANOVA evaluated usage effects. Effect size estimates were calculated.
Results: Participants (N = 98) averaged 31 years old (SD = 5.61); 71% were nulliparous. Enrollment rate was 73%, T1-T2 completion rate was 80%, and 93% accessed the website. From T1-T2, participants reported improvements in decisional conflict (p < 0.001; Cohen's d = 0.85), unmet information needs (p < 0.001; Cohen's d = 0.70), self-efficacy (p = 0.003; Cohen's d = 0.40), and self-efficacy for managing negative emotions (p = 0.03; Cohen's d = 0.29); effects were sustained at T3. There was no change in reproductive distress (p = 0.22). By T3, 94% reported increased consideration of preparatory actions and 20%-61% completed such actions.
Conclusions: The Roadmap intervention was feasible to conduct, acceptable to users, and led to improvements in key psychosocial outcomes. Future directions will test intervention efficacy in a randomized controlled trial with a larger sample and over a longer period. A web-based tool may help women make decisions about family building after cancer and prepare for potential challenges.
Keywords: cancer support intervention; decision aids; decision‐making; eHealth; fertility; young adult oncology.
© 2024 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.