Background: Young women exposed to a high hereditary breast/ovaries cancer (HBOC) risk are particularly vulnerable: they are ignored by health prevention measures; they are embedded in a stream of contradictory information ( medicine, media, internet); they may feel concerned by surgical prevention issues at a key moment of there identity construction (self, relationship, sexuality). A special psychoeducational intervention was designed to help these women to better cope with these difficulties.
Methods/design: the study consists in a prospective randomized trial including childless young female counselees (18-40 years) of CCC Jean Perrin oncogenetics department, belonging to HBOC families either BRCA-mutated or not. They will be invited to attend a weekend group session in a SPA resort and participate to a series of short expert conferences and to focus group activities (group sharing, Moreno role game) supervised by a psychotherapist. Two sessions separated by a 6-month delay (waiting list) will enable us to evaluate the intervention effect, by comparing the evolution of questionnaires scores between inclusion and 6-month post-intervention. Main end-point is an increase of the Hert Hope Inventory of at least one standard deviation. Secondary endpoints investigate self-esteem, anxiety-trait, anxiety-state, ways of coping and quality of life. Participants will be randomized 1:1 to the first or the second session so that groups are comparable. Session will be cost-free for participants.
