Support from people who had cancer improved quality of life and eased depression

The review

1. 01

   Who took part

   These were 2,403 people with cancer in 17 studies. Average ages were about 45 to 65, and seven studies were from China and five from the United States.

2. 02

   What they did

   Peer supporters, who had cancer or had survived it, gave support by phone, in person, online or a mix of these. Sessions were usually weekly, over four weeks to a year, and most other groups got usual care.

3. 03

   What happened

   Compared with the other groups, people had a better quality of life and less depression. Their confidence in managing their illness also rose, in five studies. Anxiety did not clearly change, and the paper's anxiety and confidence numbers do not fully add up, so treat them with care.

What the review found

1. HelpedOther outcomes

   In 12 studies, people who got peer support had a better quality of life than the other groups.

   • Action: Open up to your peerstested

   Pooled analysis of 12 studies with 2,019 people · vs people who got usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ the studies disagreed a lot; whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

2. HelpedOther outcomes

   In 11 studies, people who got peer support had less depression than people who got usual care.

   • Action: Open up to your peerstested

   Pooled analysis of 11 studies with 1,542 people · vs people who got usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

3. No differenceOther outcomes

   In nine studies, anxiety was not clearly lower with peer support than with usual care.

   • Action: Open up to your peerstested

   Pooled analysis of 9 studies with 1,440 people · vs people who got usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

4. HelpedMotivation

   In five studies, people who got peer support felt more confident in coping than people who got usual care.

   • Action: Open up to your peerstested

   Pooled analysis of 5 studies · vs people who got usual care · they rated themselves · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

Source