Breast CancerExBRACNCT07298980
ExBRAC- Expressive Writing in Breast Cancer
A study testing Expressive Writing in people with Breast Cancer, run by Region Skane at 1 site in Sweden.
Trial summary
The study is a randomized trial designed to examine whether an "expressive writing" intervention can affect the quality of life in patients recently diagnosed with breast cancer. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and older, women only
- Conditions the study is for
- Breast Cancer
- What is being tested?
- Expressive Writing
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 272 participants
- Where
- 1 siteSweden
- Study dates
- 1 Feb 2026to 31 Dec 2029
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 years and older
- Women only
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Planned for surgery of breast cancer without neoadjuvant treatment
Who cannot join
- Not able to understand Swedish
- Previous breast cancer
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Sweden1 site
Department of Surgery, Hospital of Helsingborg
Helsingborg, Skåne County
About this study
Official title: Expressive Writing in Breast Cancer - The ExBRAC Trial
The study is a randomized trial designed to examine whether an "expressive writing" intervention can affect the quality of life in patients recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The method "expressive writing" consists of writing about the breast cancer or other related subjects during 20 minutes, once a week for four consecutive weeks. The impact on quality of life will be assessed by having participants complete questionnaires at three different time points during the study. The questionnaire will be developed using a clinimetric approach, based on semi-structured interviews with breast cancer patients. The themes emerging from these interviews will be used to formulate the questions. Additionally, well-known quality-of-life measurement instruments and registry data with clinically relevant information-such as tumor stage and treatment-will be incorporated.
- Conditions
- Breast Cancer
- Being tested
- Expressive Writing
- Keywords
- breast cancer, quality of life, expressive writing
- Medical subject headings
- Breast Neoplasms
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Expressive WritingBehavioural
Expressive writing means that the patient writes privately about the cancer or other related subject for 20 minutes. This will be repeated once a week for 4 weeks. The writing should be done in a place free from distractions and on the patients' mother tongue. The text will not be collected.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Expressive Writing | Experimental | Expressive writing for 20 minutes, once a week, for 4 consecutive weeks. The intervention is done in addition to standard care. Receives: Behavioral: Expressive Writing |
| Control group | No intervention | No intervention. Treatment according to standard care. |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Health-related quality of life
According to EQ-5D-5L VAS. The scale ranges from 0-100 where 0 is "worst possible health" and 100 is "best possible health".
Measured: At the 12 months follow-up
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted23 Dec 2025
- Study start1 Feb 2026
- Primary completion31 Dec 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Dec 2029 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Breast CancerStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 272 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Region Skane
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Linnea Huss, M.D., Ph.D., Principal investigator, Lund University
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07298980
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 2023-2888
- Acronym
- ExBRAC
- Status last verified
- May 2026
- First submitted
- 18 Sep 2025
- Last updated
- 13 May 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 13 May 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Expressive Writing in Breast Cancer - The ExBRAC Trial
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07298980
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- ExBRAC / 2023-2888
- Conditions
- Breast Cancer
- Keywords
- breast cancer, quality of life, expressive writing
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Enrolling by invitation
- Enrolment
- 272 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Region SkaneUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Feb 2026 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 31 Dec 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 31 Dec 2029 (estimated)
- First posted
- 23 Dec 2025 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The study is a randomized trial designed to examine whether an "expressive writing" intervention can affect the quality of life in patients recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The method "expressive writing" consists of writing about the breast cancer or other related subjects during 20 minutes, once a week for four consecutive weeks. The impact on quality of life will be assessed by having participants complete questionnaires at three different time points during the study. The questionnaire will be developed using a clinimetric approach, based on semi-structured interviews with breast cancer patients. The themes emerging from these interviews will be used to formulate the questions. Additionally, well-known quality-of-life measurement instruments and registry data with clinically relevant information-such as tumor stage and treatment-will be incorporated.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Expressive Writing | Experimental | Behavioral: Expressive WritingExpressive writing for 20 minutes, once a week, for 4 consecutive weeks. The intervention is done in addition to standard care. |
| Control group | No intervention | –No intervention. Treatment according to standard care. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- Female only
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Planned for surgery of breast cancer without neoadjuvant treatment
Key exclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Not able to understand Swedish
- Previous breast cancer
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Expressive WritingExpressive writing means that the patient writes privately about the cancer or other related subject for 20 minutes. This will be repeated once a week for 4 weeks. The writing should be done in a place free from distractions and on the patients' mother tongue. The text will not be collected. | Behavioural | Expressive Writing |
Primary outcome
Health-related quality of life
Time frame: At the 12 months follow-up
According to EQ-5D-5L VAS. The scale ranges from 0-100 where 0 is "worst possible health" and 100 is "best possible health".
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 13 May 2026.
- The ExBRAC Pilot StudyLink provided by the sponsor.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Linnea Huss, M.D., Ph.D. principal investigator
Lund University
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Expressive Writing in people with Breast Cancer, run by Region Skane at 1 site in Sweden.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 2 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: enrolling by invitation, as of the sponsor's last update on 13 May 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Sweden. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Health-related quality of life (time frame: At the 12 months follow-up). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 13 May 2026.