Lung Cancer and Aging (LuCA): Intervention Development for Addressing Aging-specific Concerns in Older Adults With Lung Cancer

Aim 1. The investigators will first develop a brief geriatric assessment, designed to address the specific needs of older adults with lung cancer. As a foundation, the investigators will collect existing, empirically supported geriatric assessment tools, such as the Senior Adult Oncology Program (SAOP) assessment and the Geriatric 8 (G8), and the Triage Risk Screening Tool (TRST). The investigators will combine these tools such that all relevant domains are included in the aggregated assessment. The study team will then collaboratively add further items into the assessment (as related to difficulties commonly faced by older adults with lung cancer) and remove excess or irrelevant items.

The study team will then develop the initial prototype of a need-based behavioral intervention protocol to address aging-specific concerns and multimorbidity in older adults with lung cancer. The behavioral intervention will build upon and extend a previously tested intervention, which demonstrated benefits for reducing depressive and anxiety symptoms in older adults with lung cancer. The intervention will be a 5-session protocol, to be delivered to patients in an individual therapy setting, via telehealth or in-person. The program will integrate aspects of cognitive behavioral therapy (identifying and challenging automatic thoughts, engaging in behavioral activation) and acceptance and commitment therapy (integrating one's values, distancing skills). The intervention will include skills such as problem-solving, communicating with close others and the medical team, and breathing techniques to improve shortness of breath related to lung cancer.

Aim 2. The investigators will then conduct interviews with lung cancer patients (N=12), provider stakeholders (N=12), and caregivers (N=6) in order to obtain feedback on the proposed assessment and intervention. Caregiver participants will be either a) caregivers for lung cancer patients participating in interviews for this study, or b) caregivers for other patients with lung cancer. Each interview will be 30-45 minutes in length.

All patient, caregiver, and provider interview sessions will be recorded and transcribed verbatim. During interview sessions, the participant will be provided with the current version of the geriatric assessment and behavioral intervention. A semi-structured interview script will be utilized to obtain feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of the materials, thoughts on topics to add or remove, and amendments to any wording or structural details. Data from the initial interviews will allow the investigators to refine the assessment, referral resources, and intervention content so that it best meets the needs of this patient population.

All patients, caregivers, and provider stakeholders will be invited to complete a second interview to provide feedback on the revised materials. Thus, participants will be recruited to participate in 2 interviews - one for the initial set of materials, and one for the revised set. Because all participation is voluntary, participants can choose to opt out of any portion. If the investigators are unable to obtain adequate response rates for the second interview, they will recruit new participants meeting eligibility criteria to complete interviews surrounding the revised material.