Compassionate Communication and Advance Care Planning to Improve End of Life Care in Treatment of Hematological Disease (ACT)
This is not medical advice. AI-assisted translation — inaccuracies may occur. Always verify the original and consult your oncologist before taking any steps.
About the trial
Patients diagnosed with hematologic cancer are at substantial risk of dying, as 5-year survival among patients with acute myeloid leukemia is 20 % and only every second patient treated for incurable myeloma lives 5 years after date of diagnosis. Nevertheless, many overestimate their prognosis, and value of therapy. Patients with hematological cancers frequently have poor end of life outcomes, such as high treatment activity close to death, where clinical effects are doubtful, and low utilization of palliative care. Prognostic awareness and end of life (EOL) issues have urgency in the communication between patients, their caregiving relatives, and clinicians, in order to avoid futile treatments and suffering at EOL. Inspired by advanced care planning, the investigators developed the concept "Advance Consultations Concerning participants Life and Treatment" (ACT) in collaboration with a group consisting of hematologists, nurses, patients, and caregivers. The ACT concept consists of an 8-hour training day for clinicians, clinical tools, system changes, and preparation material for patients and caregivers prior to the consultation. ACT involves patients and caregivers earlier in preparation for life with chronic progressive disease and EOL-decisions, through an intervention based on compassionate communication and early planning of EOL-care. The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of the intervention on use of chemotherapy and quality of EOL-care in patients with hematological malignancy. Based on the results of the completed pilot study, the investigators are planning a nationwide 2-arm cluster randomized controlled trial where 40 physicians and 80 nurses across seven different hematological departments are randomized to either usual care or ACT training and completing ACT conversations. The investigators expect to include a total of 400 patients and their family caregivers. It is hypothesized that the ACT intervention will decrease use of futile chemotherapy, prepare patients and caregivers for difficult end-of-life-decisions, and improve quality of end-of-life care in hematology.
Original English text from ClinicalTrials.gov
Who can (and can't) join
✓ Qualifies
- •Wiek co najmniej 18 lat
- •Rozpoznanie jednej z chorób: zespół mielodysplastyczny wysokiego ryzyka, ostra białaczka szpikowa, chłoniak lub szpiczak plazmocytowy
- •Ograniczone możliwości leczenia
- •Świadoma zgoda pacjenta
- •Umiejętność komunikacji w języku duńskim
- •Opiekun wskazany przez pacjenta (członek rodziny lub osoba bliska)
- •Opiekun ma co najmniej 18 lat i może uczestniczyć w spotkaniach
- •Lekarz lub pielęgniarka specjalizujący się w hematologii pracujący w tym samym oddziale
✗ Disqualifies
- •Pacjent lub opiekun cierpiący na poważne zaburzenie psychiatryczne
- •Lekarz lub pielęgniarka niespełniający kryteriów włączenia
Simplified criteria — AI translation
Trial details
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
- Last updated (source)
- August 12, 2026
- Sex
- No restrictions
Therapies / drugs in trial
Locations (7)
Aalborg Universitetshospital
Aalborg, Denmark
Aarhus Universitetshospital
Aarhus, Denmark
Sydvestjysk sygehus - Esbjerg
Esbjerg, Denmark
Regionshospitalet Gødstrup
Herning, Denmark
Odense Universitetshospital
Odense, Denmark
Sjællands universitetshospital Roskilde
Roskilde, Denmark
Lillebælt syge - Vejle Sygehus
Vejle, Denmark
Trial contact
Cæcilie Borregaard Myrhøj, MScN
Annika von Heymann, PhD
Contact information from ClinicalTrials.gov. Contact in English.
Share this trial
Data from ClinicalTrials.gov. AI-assisted translation, last sync: 8/13/2026.
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