Division of Psycho-Oncology

Asao Ogawa, Ken Shimizu, Yoshihisa Matsumoto

Introduction

The aim of the Division of Psycho-Oncology is to develop mind-centered interventions to restore, maintain, and improve the quality of life for patients and their families throughout cancer treatment, and for end-of-life care. Our division has focused on developing effective interventions for delirium, dementia, and depression in cancer patients as well as on determining the mechanism underlying the relationship between cancer and the mind through a combination of neuropsychiatric, psychosocial, and behavioral sciences.

Especially, increases in the number of individuals diagnosed with cancer each year, due in large part to the growth of the aging population, as well as improving survival rates have led to an ever-increasing number of elderly cancer patients with the deterioration of cognitive function. Thus, we conduct research on the development and validation of geriatric assessment such as mini-cog, comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA), and so on, and the evaluation of effectiveness about multidisciplinary intervention among hospitalized cancer patients with delirium or dementia.

Research activities

1.A multi-center, cluster randomized controlled study comparing usual care and a multidisciplinary intervention such as DELirium Team Approach-program (DELTA program) to prevent the development and severity of delirium among hospitalized cancer patients (Research and Development grants for cancer at the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development)

Delirium, defined as an acute disorder of attention and global cognitive function, is a common, serious, and potentially preventable source of morbidity and mortality for hospitalized elderly people. The primary prevention, preventing delirium before it develops, is the most effective strategy for reducing delirium. Thus, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of multidisciplinary intervention to prevent the development and severity of delirium among hospitalized cancer patients designed by a multi-center, cluster randomized controlled study.

2.Development of the support program for the people with dementia in acute hospital settings (PENTA program) as a multidisciplinary intervention to treatment and care dementia (Research and Development grants for dementia at the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development)

With the proportion of growing elderly population, the prevalence of dementia with physical and mental condition at acute hospitals has increased. The purpose of this study is to develop the support program for people with dementia in acute hospital settings as a multidisciplinary intervention to treatment and care dementia to establish multiple access points in the dementia care pathway in Japan.

List of papers published in 2016

Journal

1.Fujisawa D, Inoguchi H, Shimoda H, Yoshiuchi K, Inoue S, Ogawa A, Okuyama T, Akechi T, Mimura M, Shimizu K, Uchitomi Y. Impact of depression on health utility value in cancer patients. Psychooncology, 25:491-495, 2016

2.Akiyama M, Hirai K, Takebayashi T, Morita T, Miyashita M, Takeuchi A, Yamagishi A, Kinoshita H, Shirahige Y, Eguchi K. The effects of community-wide dissemination of information on perceptions of palliative care, knowledge about opioids, and sense of security among cancer patients, their families, and the general public. Support Care Cancer, 24:347-356, 2016

3.Akizuki N, Shimizu K, Asai M, Nakano T, Okusaka T, Shimada K, Inoguchi H, Inagaki M, Fujimori M, Akechi T, Uchitomi Y. Prevalence and predictive factors of depression and anxiety in patients with pancreatic cancer: a longitudinal study. Jpn J Clin Oncol, 46:71-77, 2016

4.Amano K, Maeda I, Morita T, Miura T, Inoue S, Ikenaga M, Matsumoto Y, Baba M, Sekine R, Yamaguchi T, Hirohashi T, Tajima T, Tatara R, Watanabe H, Otani H, Takigawa C, Matsuda Y, Nagaoka H, Mori M, Kinoshita H. Clinical Implications of C-Reactive Protein as a Prognostic Marker in Advanced Cancer Patients in Palliative Care Settings. J Pain Symptom Manage, 51:860-867, 2016

5.Maeda I, Morita T, Yamaguchi T, Inoue S, Ikenaga M, Matsumoto Y, Sekine R, Yamaguchi T, Hirohashi T, Tajima T, Tatara R, Watanabe H, Otani H, Takigawa C, Matsuda Y, Nagaoka H, Mori M, Tei Y, Kikuchi A, Baba M, Kinoshita H. Effect of continuous deep sedation on survival in patients with advanced cancer (J-Proval): a propensity score-weighted analysis of a prospective cohort study. Lancet Oncol, 17:115-122, 2016

6.Matsuo N, Morita T, Matsuda Y, Okamoto K, Matsumoto Y, Kaneishi K, Odagiri T, Sakurai H, Katayama H, Mori I, Yamada H, Watanabe H, Yokoyama T, Yamaguchi T, Nishi T, Shirado A, Hiramoto S, Watanabe T, Kohara H, Shimoyama S, Aruga E, Baba M, Sumita K, Iwase S. Predictors of Responses to Corticosteroids for Cancer-Related Fatigue in Advanced Cancer Patients: A Multicenter, Prospective, Observational Study. J Pain Symptom Manage, 52:64-72, 2016

7.Mori M, Nishi T, Nozato J, Matsumoto Y, Miyamoto S, Kizawa Y, Morita T. Unmet Learning Needs of Physicians in Specialty Training in Palliative Care: A Japanese Nationwide Study. J Palliat Med, 19:1074-1079, 2016

8.Morita T, Naito AS, Aoyama M, Ogawa A, Aizawa I, Morooka R, Kawahara M, Kizawa Y, Shima Y, Tsuneto S, Miyashita M. Nationwide Japanese Survey About Deathbed Visions: "My Deceased Mother Took Me to Heaven". J Pain Symptom Manage, 52:646-654 e645, 2016

9.Onaka Y, Shintani N, Nakazawa T, Kanoh T, Ago Y, Matsuda T, Hashimoto R, Ohi K, Hirai H, Nagata K-Y, Nakamura M, Kasai A, Hayata-Takano A, Nagayasu K, Takuma K, Ogawa A, Baba A, Hashimoto H. Prostaglandin D2 signaling mediated by the CRTH2 receptor is involved in MK-801-induced cognitive dysfunction. Behav Brain Res, 314:77-86, 2016

10.Yamaguchi T, Morita T, Nitto A, Takahashi N, Miyamoto S, Nishie H, Matsuoka J, Sakurai H, Ishihara T, Tarumi Y, Ogawa A. Establishing Cutoff Points for Defining Symptom Severity Using the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System-Revised Japanese Version. J Pain Symptom Manage, 51:292-297, 2016