Pioneering work in psycho-oncology: Ulm doctor receives young talent award!

Pioneering work in psycho-oncology: Ulm doctor receives young talent award!

The 23rd annual meeting of the Psycho-oncology Working Group (PSO) recently took place in Würzburg, which provided information about the latest developments in psychosocial care for cancer patients and their relatives from September 25th to 27th, 2025. A highlight of the event was the awarding of the PSO Young Scientist Prize to Dr. Daniela Bodschwinna from Ulm University Hospital (UKU) for her groundbreaking publication about the online program “Partner-CARE”.

The really exciting study looks at psychosocial support for partners of cancer patients, who are often under great pressure themselves. The data collected shows that current support offers for these special groups are very limited and are hardly used. The innovative Partner-CARE program was developed to address precisely these needs and provide valuable assistance [uniklinik-ulm] reports that the online intervention offers a combination of information and exercises from psychological behavioral therapy and is supplemented by e-coaches.

Effect of Partner-CARE

In the pilot study, a total of 60 participants, German-speaking partners of cancer patients, took part in a two-arm, parallel randomized controlled trial (RCT). These were divided into two groups: an intervention group that used the Partner CARE program and a waiting list control group. Data were collected via online questionnaires at various time points to shape the feasibility, acceptability and potential effectiveness of the intervention [pubmed] reports that the dropout rate was relatively low at 17% after treatment and 29% after four months. These figures demonstrate the interest and satisfaction of the participants with the program, which was successfully completed by 73.3% of the participants.

The first evaluation shows promising results: participants reported a significant reduction in their psychological stress and anxiety. The strongest positive effects occurred in the intervention group from T0 to T1, suggesting that partner CARE is not only feasible and acceptable, but also potentially effective in improving the emotional well-being of partners of cancer patients.

Future outlook

The excellent Dr. Bodschwinna plans to further develop the project to conduct a large-scale effectiveness study. In doing so, she would like to validate the positive results of the pilot study and further expand the support offer. The awarding of the PSO Young Scientist Prize, which is endowed with 1,000 euros and is awarded every two years for outstanding scientific publications, highlights the innovative strength of research at the UKU and shows the efforts to expand digital care channels and thus give the psychosocial care of relatives a new framework.

The work of Dr. Bodschwinna and her team is a sign of how important it is to focus on the partners of cancer patients. Because they are often in the background not only as supporters, but also as people who are heavily burdened. With these innovative approaches, psycho-oncology shows once again that there is great potential for improving the quality of life of affected families.