Improving the management of menopause symptoms in cancer survivorship

• A/Prof Michelle Peate

  Project Lead

  mpeate@unimelb.edu.au
  +61 3 8345 3792

Project Details

The project is being delivered in four stages, moving from understanding the scope of the problem, to identifying barriers and enablers, through to co-designing and testing a digital tool that is practical, acceptable, and scalable.

Stage 1: Scoping Survey (Completed) - A scoping survey was conducted with female cancer survivors across tumour streams to assess prevalence, severity, bother, interference, and distress associated with menopausal symptoms (including vasomotor symptoms, mood disturbance, sleep disturbance, vulvovaginal dryness/irritation, pain during sex, and urinary discomfort). And menopause-related quality of life, symptom management, satisfaction with treatments, and unmet needs. Comparable data were collected across tumour streams using consistent PROMs, and outcomes were compared between MSAC (Menopause Symptoms After Cancer) clinic participants and community-based participants.

Stage 2: Barriers and Enablers Study (Completed) - A qualitative study explored the feasibility of a patient-driven stepped-care model through interviews with patients and clinicians (GPs, nurses, and specialists). Key insights included: Patients’ willingness to use the platform, share clinical guidelines with their GP, and recommend the platform to peers; Barriers and enablers to care, including access challenges for rural and remote populations; Clinicians’ openness to recommending the platform, accepting guidelines provided by patients, and engaging with referral pathways. Practical implementation strategies were identified to inform development of the severity-stratification tool, stepped-care model, and online platform.

Stage 3: Co-Design and Prototype Development (In Progress) - A prototype of the MySurvivorCare (MSC) Web-based App is being co-designed using a participatory, iterative approach. The process involves designing the initial prototype based on findings from Stages 1 and 2 and ongoing refinement through focus group workshops with women living with and beyond cancer, healthcare professionals, researchers, and technical partners (designers/developers). This will result in a co-designed prototype app that is practical, user-friendly, and responsive to stakeholder needs, with feedback guiding refinement into a beta version of the platform.

Stage 4: Feasibility Testing and User Experience (Planned) - The MSC Beta Version will undergo a small RCT feasibility study. Participants will be allocated to tailored care options (e.g., online CBT, GP consultation with guidelines, or referral to specialist services). The primary hypothesis is that ≥80% of participants will comply with their allocated care pathway. We will also conduct a GP sub-study, these interviews will assess GP engagement, willingness to support platform use, and perceived barriers/enablers to delivering optimal guideline-based care. The aim is to collect evidence of feasibility, usability, and acceptability of the MSC platform among women with a history of breast cancer and their GPs. Also to collect preliminary data on health outcomes, including reduction of vasomotor symptoms (e.g., hot flushes, night sweats) and improved quality of life. Insights to guide the design and evaluation of a fully functional “live” MSC platform for future implementation.

Researchers

A/Prof Michelle Peate - Program Leader, Psychosocial Health and Wellbeing (emPoWeR) Unit, Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health

Prof Shanton Chang - Professor, School of Computing and Information Systems

Prof  Michael Jefford - Professor, Department of Health Services Research and the Australian Cancer Survivorship Centre, Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology

Prof Martha Hickey - Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health

Prof Christobel Saunder- Professor, Melbourne Medical School

Ms Dorcas Serwaa - PhD student, Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health

Ms Nipuni Susanto - Senior Research Assistant, Psychosocial Health and Wellbeing (emPoWeR) Unit,  Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health

Mr Lewis Gauci -  Medical Student, Rural Clinical School, Department of Rural Health, Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne

Dr Digsu Koye, Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne

Collaborators

A/Prof Carolyn Ee, Caring Futures Institute, Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia, Australia and NICM Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia

Prof Paul Cohen, Division of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical School, The University of Western Australia

Dr Jennifer Marino, Specialty of Child and Adolescent Health, Sydney Medical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Australia

Kate Rolshoven, Consumer Representative, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Royal Women’s Hospital, University of Melbourne

Kate Keogh-Murray, Consumer Representative, Seat at the Table (SATT) program, Breast Cancer Network Australia

Consumer Advisory Group

The project has a consumer advisory group consisting of women living with and beyond different cancer types. This ensures the platform is patient-centred and rooted in real-life experiences. Our aim is to develop the MSC platform 'with' rather than 'for' its end users. The advisory group includes:

• Chair – Stephanie Cooper
• Deputy Chair – Kate Rolshoven
• Secretary- Dorcas Serwaa

Other Core Advisory Members

• Jennifer Coffee
• Fenella Gesch
• Clare Plozza
• Kim Adams
• Milica Kokkinakis
• Sandey Fitzgerald
• Stacey Allerton
• Jackie Ohlin
• Christie Yu
• Glenys Davidson
• Suzana Adin
• Kate Keogh-Murray

Consumer Organisation Collaborators

The project is underpinned by strong partnerships with leading consumer organisations, ensuring the platform is patient-centred and grounded in lived experience. Our collaborators include:

• Ovarian Cancer Australia
• Jean Hailes
• Sock it to Sarcoma
• The Leukemia Foundation
• Pancare Foundation
• Pink Hope
• NeuroEndocrine Cancer Australia
• Myeloma Foundation Australia
• Counterpart

Funding

This research has been funded by the Cancer Council New South Wales.

Research Outcomes

This body of work aims to develop a novel online service delivery platform (MySurvivorCare) and to evaluate its impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL).