Effectiveness of an eHealth intervention to improve quality of life in long-term breast cancer survivors: a 9-month randomized controlled trial
Mené sur 201 patientes ayant survécu plus de 5 ans à un cancer du sein (durée de suivi : 9 mois), cet essai randomisé évalue l'efficacité d'une intervention de santé numérique pour améliorer leur qualité de vie
Background: Quality of life may deteriorate in long-term breast cancer survivors after treatment. Evidence on the long-term effectiveness of eHealth interventions remains limited. This study aimed to evaluate the longer-term effect of CUMACA-M on overall quality of life over a 9-month follow-up period among long-term breast cancer survivors, compared with usual care.
Methods: A parallel-group randomized clinical trial was conducted in Spain from November 2023 to January 2025. A total of 201 disease-free long-term breast cancer survivors (≥5 years post-diagnosis) were randomly assigned to a 9-month eHealth intervention (n = 102) or usual care (n = 99). Quality of life was assessed using the Quality of Life–Cancer Survivors scale at baseline and 3, 6, and 9 months. Intention-to-treat analyses used mixed linear models and nonparametric tests as appropriate.
Results: Retention exceeded 90%. Group-by-time interactions were significant for overall quality of life (P=.006) and psychological well-being (P= .034). Quality of life declined in the control group from 5.83 at baseline to 5.57 at 9 months (change=-0.26, 95% CI=-0.46 to -0.07) but remained stable in the intervention group (5.70 to 5.69). At 9 months, adjusted quality of life favored CUMACA-M (mean difference=0.24, 95% CI = 0.03 to 0.44; P=.024; Cohen d = 0.32). Small significant effects also favored CUMACA-M for physical (P<.001, r = 0.28), social (P=.004, r = 0.23), and psychological well-being (P=.034, Cohen d = 0.40), but not spiritual well-being.
Conclusions: The eHealth intervention prevented deterioration in quality of life over 9 months among long-term breast cancer survivors. Digital interventions may provide a scalable strategy to support survivorship care.
Journal of the National Cancer Institute , article en libre accès, 2026