An Interesting Morning

This morning I went to Wichita State University to participate in the Breast Cancer Decision Making Study. The study is directed by a graduate research assistant in the Psychology Department's Decision Making Research Lab.

Simply put, the scenario was that participants were given a hypothetical diagnosis of early breast cancer disease and through a series of patient videos and survey questions would choose either to treat by lumpectomy with radiation treatment or mastectomy. Follow-up questions were asked to determine the reasons for the decision. It was all very interesting. The data will be compiled, analyzed, and written up in a technical journal and will ultimately be printed in brochures and pamphlets used by doctors and other professionals. There were just three of us today, all assigned to a little cubicle with a MAC. Each had different information sets and videos, as will all of the 300 participants.

Over the years I've read of many different study groups, but never qualified as a participant. I've always thought it would be an interesting thing to do and I wasn't disappointed. It was stimulating to do something a little out of the norm - and hopefully make a tiny contribution to such an important topic.