The Therapeutic Effect of Expressive Writing.

Recruiting now · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Cancer

In brief

The goal of this clinical trial is to understand the impact of compassionate expressive writing in people living with and beyond cancer. The main question it aims to answer is: Does compassionate expressive writing have any impact on well-being outcomes in people living with and beyond cancer, such as body compassion, self-compassion, quality of life and psychological well-being outcomes ? Researchers will compare compassionate expressive writing with a standard expressive writing task (with no compassionate prompt) to see if there is a difference in self-reported body compassion, self-compassion, quality of life and psychological well-being outcomes between the two conditions. Participants will : Complete a series of pre-intervention questionnaires. Be assigned to one of the two writing conditions. Attend four expressive writing sessions and write freely for approximately 20 minutes in response to a topic related to their cancer experience. Complete a series of post-intervention questionnaires. Repeat the questionnaires at 1-month follow-up.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07567157

Run by

Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust

People needed

50

Starts

2025-12-22

Expected to finish

2026-05-01

Last updated by the study team

2026-05-05

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• To have experienced an internal or external change to their body due to any form of cancer and/or its treatment at any point in their lives.
• To be 18 or older.
• The ability to read and write in English.
• To have the ability to provide informed consent.

You may not qualify if…

• Distress levels that make participation safe or inappropriate due to cancer prognosis or a mental health condition. (This is flagged by the score on the IES questionnaire.)
• Inability to realistically commit to a 4-week intervention due to poor physical or mental health or other personal commitments.
• Inability to provide informed consent.

Where it is running

• Royal Cornwall Hospital NHS Trust — Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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