This mixed-method pilot study found preliminary evidence of feasibility and acceptability of an adapted online mental health program (the Be Well Plan) for people with multiple myeloma and smouldering myeloma, with significant improvements in mental wellbeing and empowerment, providing a foundation for future myeloma-specific program adaptation.
Key Findings
Results
The Be Well Plan mental health program demonstrated encouraging satisfaction and feasibility among people with multiple myeloma and smouldering myeloma.
Twenty consumers aged 38-72 years participated, including 16 with multiple myeloma and 4 with smouldering multiple myeloma.
Four Myeloma Australia nurses also pilot-tested the program.
The program is an existing online mental health program called the Be Well Plan.
Post-program feedback surveys and semi-structured focus groups were used to assess acceptability and inform future adaptation.
Results
Participants showed significant improvements with large effects in mental wellbeing following the program.
Univariate ANOVAs indicated significant improvements in mental wellbeing with a large effect size (ηp2 = .24).
This was identified as a preliminary signal of change to inform future trial planning.
The study was a pre-post pilot design and was not powered for definitive efficacy conclusions.
Results
Participants showed significant improvements with large effects in empowerment following the program.
Univariate ANOVAs indicated significant improvements in empowerment with a large effect size (ηp2 = .25).
Empowerment was one of four outcomes measured alongside mental wellbeing, anxiety, and depression.
Results were described as providing 'important insights for future adequately powered trials.'
Results
The program did not produce statistically significant effects on anxiety or depressive symptoms.
ANOVAs revealed non-significant effects on both anxiety and depressive symptoms.
The authors noted these non-significant findings provide insights for future adequately powered trials.
The pilot study was not designed or powered to detect definitive changes in these outcomes.
Results
Qualitative thematic analysis identified several key themes related to program experience and adaptation needs.
Three primary themes emerged: the importance of connecting with other consumers, the need for myeloma-specific adaptation, and delivery, facilitation, and clinical implementation considerations.
Data were collected through post-program feedback surveys and semi-structured focus groups.
Thematic analysis was used as the qualitative analytic method.
Findings were used to generate consumer-informed recommendations to guide future bespoke program adaptation.
Results
Consumers identified a need for myeloma-specific content adaptation of the existing mental health program.
The existing program (Be Well Plan) was not originally designed for people with myeloma.
Participants highlighted disease- and treatment-related symptoms and burden as sources of significant psychosocial distress specific to this population.
Consumer feedback explicitly called for adaptation to make the program more relevant to the myeloma experience.
The study population includes people living with an incurable blood cancer, underscoring unique psychosocial needs.
Background
Consumer involvement was central to the study design and is described as essential to producing relevant and acceptable mental health interventions.
The study used a mixed-method pilot design with consumer involvement at the core of program evaluation.
Consumer-informed recommendations were explicitly sought to guide future adaptation.
The authors note that consumer involvement is 'recognised as essential to producing research that is relevant, acceptable, and ultimately more effective.'
What This Means
This research suggests that an existing online mental health program called the Be Well Plan can be feasibly and acceptably delivered to people living with multiple myeloma (an incurable blood cancer) and its precursor condition, smouldering multiple myeloma. Twenty patients and four specialist nurses tested the program, and participants reported satisfaction with it. People who completed the program showed meaningful improvements in their sense of mental wellbeing and personal empowerment, though no statistically significant changes were detected in anxiety or depression scores—likely because the study was small and not designed to definitively test those outcomes.
Participants also shared qualitative feedback through surveys and focus groups, highlighting three important themes: the value of connecting with others who share similar experiences, the desire for content that is specifically tailored to the myeloma journey rather than general cancer, and practical considerations around how the program is delivered and supported by clinical staff. These insights point to a clear appetite for a program that speaks directly to the unique challenges of living with an incurable blood cancer, including the ongoing treatment burden and uncertainty that people with myeloma face.
This research matters because people with myeloma experience significant psychological distress, yet there are few mental health programs designed specifically for them. By involving consumers directly in evaluating and shaping the program, this study lays the groundwork for developing a future myeloma-specific mental health intervention that is person-centred, practical, and more likely to be used and sustained in real-world clinical settings. The findings will guide a future, larger clinical trial to properly test the program's effectiveness.
Tuckey N, Iasiello M, Cantley M, van Agteren J, Beer H, Fassnacht D, et al.. (2026). Adapting a mental health program for people with multiple myeloma and smouldering myeloma: a consumer-informed feasibility study.. Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-026-11163-2