Effects of Somatic Acupressure on Fatigue-Sleep Disturbance-Depression Symptom Cluster in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Phase III Randomized Controlled Trial

Fatigue, sleep disturbance, and depression are frequent concurrent symptoms during cancer treatment or with disease progression in breast cancer (BC) survivors. Research demonstrates that somatic acupressure (SA) is a promising approach for managing cancer-related symptoms, but the definite effects, safety, and economic effectiveness of SA for managing the fatigue–sleep disturbance–depression symptom cluster (FSDSC) have not been evaluated yet. This doctoral research will be a Phase III three-arm sham-controlled RCT to evaluate the clinical efficacy, safety, and economic effectiveness of SA for FSDSC management in BC survivors. A 19-week randomized, partially blinded trial comparing true SA with sham SA daily for seven weeks versus usual care with a 12-week follow-up will be conducted.