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Cancer Survivorship and Care / Childhood Cancer Survivors' Quality of Life · Journal article
Frontiers in Psychology · September 8, 2026
Early or partial results. Treat as a signal, not a conclusion.
This is an early-stage adaptation study of Parent-FORT, a newly modified group intervention for parental fear of cancer recurrence following childhood cancer treatment. Four mothers completed a single usability cycle with feedback on acceptability and content; the work is preliminary and designed to inform a future feasibility pilot, not to demonstrate clinical efficacy.
Single-arm adaptation and usability study with qualitative co-design methods. Five mothers whose children were diagnosed with childhood cancer; enrolled from Alberta and Ontario, Canada.. Intervention: Parent-FORT: adapted group intervention delivered virtually, addressing fear of cancer recurrence in parents of childhood cancer survivors, including exercises on parent-child conversations about physical symptoms and post-cancer identity.. n = 4. Two Canadian provinces: Alberta (n=2) and Ontario (n=2).
Five mothers enrolled; four completed the usability trial across two Canadian provinces (Alberta n=2, Ontario n=2) Significant adaptations were made including addition of one session, new exercises on parent-child conversations about physical symptoms and post-cancer identity exploration Inclusion criteria broadened from one-year to one-month post-treatment based on parent feedback
Safety was not reported in the material analysed. Check the source before drawing any conclusion about harm.
This study does not yet provide evidence for clinical practice. It represents an important first step in developing a parent-targeted FCR intervention, but clinicians should await results from the planned feasibility pilot before considering adoption.
This is an early-stage adaptation and usability study of a newly modified intervention with a single small uncontrolled group, generating preliminary evidence of acceptability but not efficacy.
As stated by the source record.
Quoted from the source exactly as published.
This study does not yet provide evidence for clinical practice. It represents an important first step in developing a parent-targeted FCR intervention, but clinicians should await results from the planned feasibility pilot before considering adoption.
Graded across the dimensions that decide whether you should act, each from what the source actually supports. There is no single score, and where a dimension was not assessed it says so.
Introduction Fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) is a common and distressing concern for caregivers of survivors of cancer. At clinical levels, FCR is persistent, impairs quality of life, increases psychological distress, and increases health-system costs. Emerging evidence suggests that about half of parents of survivors of childhood cancer report clinically significant FCR, with associated negative impacts. No interventions currently target parent FCR. The Fear of Recurrence Therapy (FORT) group intervention efficaciously reduces FCR and improves quality of life for survivors of adult cancer. Our aim was to adapt FORT for virtual delivery for parents of survivors of childhood cancer and evaluate its usability. Methods Using the ADAPT and FRAME frameworks, we collaborated with 10 parents with lived experience to modify FORT for this population. Following adaptation, two trained therapists facilitated a usability trial of the adapted program (Parent-FORT) with one group of parents. Therapists and participants completed feedback questionnaires after each session to assess usefulness, usability, and readiness for future users, as well as a final exit interview. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize questionnaire data. Content analysis was used to summarize qualitative data from exit interviews. Results Five mothers whose children were diagnosed with childhood cancer were enrolled and four (Alberta, n = 2; Ontario, n = 2) completed the usability trial. Significant changes were made to the intervention language and content, resulting in an additional session. Key changes included the addition of exercises on navigating parent–child conversations about new physical symptoms and on exploring identity after cancer. Inclusion criteria were also broadened from one-year post-treatment to one-month post-treatment. Feedback indicated preliminary evidence of usability and acceptability. Qualitative analyses of exit interview data identified four themes: connectedness of the group, general format, satisfaction with the content and exercises, and overall impact. Discussion Parent-FORT reflects the first FCR intervention designed specifically for parents of survivors of childhood cancer. Meaningful co-design with parents was essential to the success of the adaptation. These preliminary findings support Parent-FORT’s readiness for testing in a future feasibility pilot study.
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