A team of passionate speech pathologists and researchers at PA Hospital are pioneering a groundbreaking approach with their ‘CanCommunicate’ project, delivered by Erin Kelly and Pip Butler.
This PA-led initiative, spearheaded by Dr Emma Finch, addresses a critical gap in care by offering a tailored approach that has already shown promising results.
“CanCommunicate is the first communication intervention for patients with brain tumours and their families, both nationally and internationally,” Erin said.
With over two-thirds of brain tumour patients experiencing communication difficulties, CanCommunicate’s seven-week speech pathology intervention is specifically designed to address these unique challenges—challenges that are often not addressed in larger cancer studies.
“Communication impairments are common among brain tumour patients, yet less than 30 per cent of Australians with brain cancer receive the speech pathology services they need.
“Until now, the fallback has been treatment approaches designed for other populations, like stroke rehabilitation patients,” Erin explains.
The results are already making waves. “It’s been really nice getting feedback from patients and families about the service we’re delivering and how this could contribute to potential future service development.
“The intervention had a functional focus to help people achieve their communication goals. One patient noted an improvement in social interactions, now reconnecting with friends and family. Another regained the confidence to interact with shop keepers.
“It’s quite nice to hear those real-life impacts and how the communication interventions are improving lives,” she said.
The CanCommunicate team is eager to expand their reach and continue advocating for the communication needs of brain tumour patients.
By focusing on this often-overlooked aspect of treatment, the team are setting a new standard in care—one that’s all about giving patients their voices back.
CanCommunicate is led by Dr Emma Finch, and her co-investigators including Ms Erin Kelly, Ms Philippa Butler, Dr Anna Farrell, Dr Sonia Brownsett, A/Prof David Copland, Prof Tamara Ownsworth, A/Prof Mark Pinkham, Dr Clare Burns, Prof Jennifer Fleming, Dr Emmah Doig, Dr Rachel Wenke, Steven McPhail, Dr Leisa Turkington and Dr John Pierce.