Cognitive Behavioral Theory-assisted Virtual Reality for Chronic CANcer Pain (VR-CAN)
RecruitingNot applicableNCT07318519
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This study has no listed site in Canada in this snapshot. It is included as part of the worldwide chronic pain corpus.
Brief summary (from the registry)
While chronic cancer pain affecting as many as 75% of patients is typically addressed using pharmacologic interventions, experts and patients alike support maximizing any relevant non-pharmacologic interventions as well, such as cognitive behavioral therapy. Virtual reality, a novel technology that can temporarily immerse users in a calm, pleasant environment, has been increasingly shown to facilitate improvement in different acute and chronic pain syndromes by providing distraction from pain and lowering pain sensation. To address the significant needs of patients living with chronic cancer pain, we aim to develop and pilot test a prototype device that will leverage cognitive behavioral therapy principles to deliver a novel virtual reality pain therapy. The investigators will do this through the following steps: Step 1. Develop and refine a CBT-assisted VR prototype for patients with chronic cancer pain (VR-CAN). Step 2. Conduct a randomized controlled trial to examine the feasibility, acceptability, usability, safety, and initial clinical impact of the developed VR-CAN prototype compared to a tablet-based two-dimensional video control group. Step 3. Collect and evaluate qualitative post-intervention data on VR-CAN participants' preferences, thoughts, and feelings about the VR-CAN technology and protocol to optimize for a future, larger, fully powered randomized controlled trial.
Study details
- Official title
- Cognitive Behavioral Theory-assisted Virtual Reality for Chronic Cancer Pain (VR-CAN): Device Prototype Development and Feasibility Testing
- Conditions
- Cancer
- Cancer Pain
- Chronic Cancer Pain
- Interventions
- Device: VR-CAN prototype chronic cancer pain therapy -- virtual reality program delivering CBT for chronic cancer pain management
- Device: Active Control -- two-dimensional tablet-delivered intervention
- Sponsor
- Medstar Health Research Institute
- Collaborators
- National Cancer Institute (NCI)
- Start date
- 2025-07-01
- Primary completion
- 2026-12-01
- Sex
- All
- Age range
- from 18 Years
- Results posted
- No results posted in this snapshot
- Countries
- United States
- Total sites listed
- 2
Eligibility criteria
Show eligibility criteria (verbatim from the registry)
Inclusion Criteria: * age at least 18 years old * cancer diagnosis, undergoing treatment * chronic cancer pain (i.e., cancer pain at least 3 months duration) with baseline pain severity at least 4/10 (where 0=no pain, 10=worst pain) Exclusion Criteria: * intractable nausea/vomiting, motion sickness, seizures/epilepsy, and/or cranial structures/abnormalities preventing VR headset use * moderate-severe pain of non-cancer etiology * enrolled in another pain study * unable to complete survey measures or interviews in English or Spanish
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov (US National Library of Medicine), snapshot October 2026. Check the registry for current recruiting status. Record: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07318519