EMDR for Fear of Cancer Recurrence in Patients with Familial Melanoma: a Waiting List Control Trial

There are an estimated 232100 cutaneous melanoma (CM) cases diagnosed and 55500 (24%) reported deaths worldwide annually. The incidence and mortality rates of CM vary per geographic location and the highest incidence rates are reported for Caucasian populations with fair skin. Approximately 10% of patients diagnosed with CM have a positive family history for this malignancy. CDKN2A gene (p16-leiden mutation) is the major melanoma susceptibility gene explaining approximately 35% of familial cases. Patients with hereditary melanoma due to a CDKN2A mutation have an estimated 70% risk of developing melanoma and a 20% risk of pancreatic cancer. Many patients with this type of melanoma develop melanoma at an earlier age than with non-familial melanoma and many develop multiple melanomas. Fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) has been found to be high (38%) among patients with CM and also among patients with familial melanoma. A large group of patients, about one third, indicate they need help with the uncertainty and threat of developing a new melanoma. While some amount of fear may be adaptive and bolster adequate healthcare behavior such as UV protection and skin examination, high levels of fear have a negative impact on patients quality of life and may lead to increased healthcare utilization. In most patients, fear of future catastrophes, such as illness recurrence, is based on past experiences.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an intervention to desensitize both memories of past experiences as well as representations of future catastrophes. EMDR is an evidence-based and protocolized treatment for patients with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and PTSD symptomatology including fear of future catastrophes. EMDR has been shown effective not only as treatment for PTSD but also for anxiety in the context of illness or medical situations. EMDR is already used in clinical practice as a treatment for FCR. Of late, is shown that EMDR-therapy is effective in decreasing FCR in patients with mammary- and colorectal carcinoma. In this study, with a replicated (n=8) single case experimental design, is found that EMDR had a large effect on high FCR and that 6 out of 8 patients went from high FCR to low FCR after EMDR. In the present study, the investigators will further investigate the effectiveness of EMDR in reducing FCR in patients with familial melanoma.

The investigators hypothesize that EMDR treatment will lead to a significant reduction of FCR in comparison to the waitinglist condition at the end of EMDR and at 2 weeks- and 3 months follow-up. The investigators hypothesize that EMDR treatment will improve the quality of life in comparison to the waiting list condition at the end of EMDR and at 2 weeks- and 3 months follow-up.