Can a 6-Week video therapy ease body image pain for head and neck cancer survivors?
NCT ID NCT05442957
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Sep 04, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This study tests a brief video-based cognitive behavioral therapy (BRIGHT) to reduce body image distress in 180 head and neck cancer survivors. Participants are randomly assigned to either BRIGHT or a supportive care control group. The goal is to see if BRIGHT can help survivors feel less distressed about changes to their appearance after treatment.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) delivered via video sessions
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could provide an effective, accessible therapy to help head and neck cancer survivors feel better about their appearance and reduce emotional distress.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small, early-stage trial comparing the therapy to supportive care, so results may not be definitive. The therapy requires active participation and may not work for everyone.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 180 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Feb 2023
- Expected to finish
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Mar 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Age \> 18 years on the day of informed consent 2. History of pathologically confirmed squamous cell carcinoma (or histologic variant) of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, nose/paranasal sinuses, carcinoma of a major or minor salivary gland, or cutaneous malignancy of the face or neck 3. History of curative intent surgery with or without adjuvant therapy, with or without reconstruction 4. Completion of oncologic treatment within 12 months of study enrollment (but no sooner than 6 weeks post-treatment completion) 1. Patients who complete definitive HNC-directed therapy (e.g., surgery or radiation therapy) but are on adjuvant immunotherapy are considered eligible 2. Oncologic treatment refers to cancer-directed therapy; non-cancer surgery (e.g., trachea-esophageal puncture, flap debulking, etc) are not relevant for the purposes of determining eligibility vis a vis completing oncologic treatment within 6-week to 12 months of enrollment 5. Cancer-free at the time of accrual -patients with known indolent malignancies (e.g., non-melanoma skin cancer, low risk thyroid cancer, untreated prostate cancer, etc) would not exclude a patient from the study 6. No planned significant HNC ablative or reconstructive surgery (defined by a postoperative inpatient stay of at least three days) during the study intervention or follow-up period as determined by the HNC oncologic surgeon at the time of study accrual 7. Willingness to be randomized to either BRIGHT or AC 8. IMAGE-HN score ≥ 22 Exclusion Criteria: 1. Inability to speak or read English 2. Pre-existing, ongoing psychotherapy services for any disorder and the participant is not willing to discontinue the prior therapy for the duration of the proposed trial 3. Severe mental illness that would prevent trial participation
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
5 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Henry Ford Hospital
RECRUITINGDetroit, Michigan, 48202, United States
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Medical University of South Carolina
RECRUITINGCharleston, South Carolina, 29425, United States
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Pennsylvania State University
RECRUITINGHershey, Pennsylvania, 16802, United States
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University of Texas Southwestern
RECRUITINGDallas, Texas, 75235, United States
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Washington University in St. Louis
RECRUITINGSt Louis, Missouri, 63110, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can a dental assistant keep cancer Patients' mouths healthier during radiation?
- Why do Non-Smokers get head and neck cancer? scientists probe tumor DNA
- Re-irradiation plus cetuximab targets head and neck tumors that return
- Sharper tumor maps: PET scans could tighten radiation beams
- One 90-Minute session may help parents steady young Kids' mental health
- Five days of radiation instead of weeks: a new test for head and neck cancer