• Miriam J Johnson, Samantha Nabb, Sara Booth, and Mona Kanaan.
• Palliative Medicine, Wolfson Palliative Care Research Centre, University of Hull, Hull, UK. Electronic address: miriam.johnson@hyms.ac.uk.
• J Pain Symptom Manage. 2020 May 1; 59 (5): 1059-1066.e2.

ContextBreathlessness is common in people with lung cancer. Nonpharmacological breathlessness interventions reduce distress because of and increase mastery over breathlessness.ObjectivesIdentify patient characteristics associated with response to breathlessness interventions.MethodsExploratory secondary trial data analysis. Response defined as a one-point improvement in 0-10 Numerical Rating Scale of worst breathlessness/last 24 hours (response-worst) or a 0.5-point improvement in the Chronic Respiratory Questionnaire (CRQ) mastery (response-mastery) at four weeks. Univariable regression explored relationships with plausible demographic, clinical, and psychological variables followed by multivariable regression for associated (P < 0.05) variables.ResultsAbout 158 participants with intrathoracic cancer (mean age 69.4 [SD 9.35] years; 40% women) were randomized to one or three breathlessness training sessions. About 91 participants had evaluable data for response-worst and 107 for response-mastery. In the univariable analyses, the personality trait openness was associated with response-worst (odds ratio [OR] 1.99 [95% CI 1.08-3.67]; P = 0.028) and response-mastery (OR 1.84 [95% CI 1.04-3.23]; P = 0.035). Higher CRQ-fatigue (OR 0.61 [95% CI 0.41-0.91]; P = 0.015), CRQ-emotion (OR 0.68 [95% CI 0.47-0.96]; P = 0.030), and worse CRQ-mastery (OR 0.61 [95% CI 0.42-0.88]; P = 0.008), and the presence of metastases and fatigue were associated with reduced odds of response-mastery. In the adjusted response-mastery model, only openness remained (OR 1.73 [95% CI 0.95-3.15]; P = 0.072).ConclusionWorse baseline health, worse breathlessness mastery, but not severity, and openness were associated with a better odds of response. Breathlessness services must be easy to access, and patients should be encouraged and supported to attend.Copyright © 2020 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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