Managing Cancer And Living Meaningfully (CALM)

The CALM Intervention

Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully (CALM) is a brief, semi-structured, evidence-based intervention designed to help people with advanced and metastatic cancer, and their close loved ones, manage the practical and profound problems associated with advanced disease. Reduction of psychological distress and prevention of future distress are the primary goals of CALM.

Developed by Gary Rodin MD and Sarah Hales MD PhD, at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre CALM, focuses on four content domains that address the practical and profound issues commonly faced by individuals with advanced and metastatic cancer:

  1. Symptom management and communication with health care providers
  2. Changes in self and relationships with close others
  3. Spirituality, sense of meaning and purpose
  4. Sustaining hope and facing mortality

CALM therapy optimally consists of 3 - 6 individual sessions delivered over 3 to 6 months, by a wide range of specially trained healthcare professionals. For information on upcoming CALM workshops click here

Evidence for CALM

Research conducted over the past decade has shown that CALM is a feasible, acceptable, and effective therapy in reducing and preventing depressive symptoms for individuals with advanced or metastatic cancer. Findings from a randomized controlled trial on CALM, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology are available here

Please click here for additional publications on CALM.

Supervision

Online supervision is provided to clinicians from collaborating institutions with a cohort of therapists committed to becoming certified CALM therapists. To begin supervision, therapists must be seeing regular CALM cases. Supervision follows a train-the-trainer model and is provided virtually across the globe.

CALM Therapy featured as part of UHN Seried on End-of-Life Care

  Jan 24th, 2015      Katrina MacAlpine

For some couples, third time's the charm.

That's true for Larry and Evelyn Bryan, who met more than 25 years ago working for the same company. She was in product development, he in engineering support. Each had been married twice before.  They fell in love, married in 1989...

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Multi-Disciplinary Research Concepts in Palliative and Supportive Care

The CALM Intervention Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully (CALM) is a brief, semi-structured, evidence-based intervention designed to help people with advanced and metastatic cancer, and their close loved ones, manage...

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CALM Training Program

The CALM Intervention Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully (CALM) is a brief, semi-structured, evidence-based intervention designed to help people with advanced and metastatic cancer, and their close loved ones, manage...

Read More


Resources for Palliative and End-of-Life Care for First Nation, Inuit and Metis

The CALM Intervention Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully (CALM) is a brief, semi-structured, evidence-based intervention designed to help people with advanced and metastatic cancer, and their close loved ones, manage...

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Project Initiatives

Supported by the Weston Family Foundation, a Canadian National CALM program has been developed to implement CALM as standard of care in 10 cancer centres across Canada. This will include the training and supervision of CALM therapists, the establishment of CALM clinics in each of the cancer centers, and the development of mechanisms for routine and proactive referral of patients to CALM clinics. This program will also serve as template for the application of the CALM approach to the care of patients with other life-limiting major medical conditions  and for the support of the parents of children with cancer.

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The Global CALM Program is an international initiative to train clinicians in CALM therapy, gather evidence about the implementation of CALM in diverse settings, and to make CALM a standard of care for people facing metastatic and advanced cancer.

GIPPEC has formed a network of international sites in Europe, Austral-Asia, Africa, North and South America. Each site has a CALM lead who is responsible for the implementation of CALM in their centre with the aim of becoming a hub to support training, data collection and the implementation of CALM in multiple sites within their region. 

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Gary Rodin

Director of GIPPEC at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto

 

Kate Hunt

Social Worker in Research

 

Laura Foran

Manager, CALM National Program

 

Lesley Chalklin

Program Manager, GIPPEC

 

Lisa Klekovkina

Social Worker in Research

 

Maya Stern

Social Worker in Research

 

Megan George

Masters of Science Candidate, University of Toronto

 

Sarah Hales

Clinician Researcher Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

 

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