[Cancer survivorship care programs and self-management]

Understanding the Quality of Life Among Patients With Cancer in Saudi Arabia: Insights From a Cross-Sectional Study

INTRODUCTION

Cancer patients' quality of life (QoL) significantly influences treatment response and mortality rates. Understanding QoL domains among patients with cancer and what affects it can help create interventions that improve QoL and ease patients' experience. This study measures the OoL among patients with cancer and influencing factors.

METHODS

A prospective cross-sectional questionnaire-based study included cancer patients aged >18 currently receiving treatment. The questionnaire collected social and economic data, followed by the validated Arabic version of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC-QLQ-C30). Means and standard deviations for described numeric variables and frequencies and percentages described categorical variables. Analysis of variance, F-tests, and P-values were reported.

RESULTS

Among 182 cancer patients, 60% were female. Younger patients exhibited higher QoL in physical and role functioning (P = .016 and .03) and experienced more significant financial impact (P = .0144). Females reported more adverse effects from cancer symptoms, including fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and pain (36.7% vs 25.5%, P = .005; 20.6% vs 11.5%, P = .0186; 34.7% vs 25.1%, P = .0281). Single patients had superior QoL in physical functioning compared to others (P = .0127). Patients traveling long distances were more likely to face adverse financial consequences (P = .007). Asthmatic patients exhibited lower QoL in physical, role, and cognitive functioning (72.3 vs 37.8, P = .0147; 76.4 vs 22.2, P = .0024; 84.7 vs 44.4, P = .0038) and reported increased dyspnea and appetite loss (16 vs 55.6 and 26.1 vs 66.7, both P < .05).

CONCLUSION

Factors influencing QoL in Saudi cancer patients include age, marital status, gender, hospital distance, and chronic conditions. Thus emphasizing the necessity for personalized care strategies to enhance outcomes and alleviate the overall burden of cancer care.

"Scanxiety" and a sense of control: the perspective of lung cancer survivors and their caregivers on follow-up - a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES

Lung cancer survivors often suffer from physical, emotional and social long-term effects of disease and treatment. Caregivers are also affected by the cancer diagnosis throughout the course of the disease and are frequently burdened by high levels of psychosocial stress. However, little is known about how follow-up care after the completed treatment phase can help to improve long-term quality of life. In the context of patient-centred cancer care, considering the survivors' and caregivers' perspectives is an important step toward improving care structures. We therefore explored how lung cancer survivors and their caregivers experience follow-up examinations and their possible psychosocial effects on everyday life in order to shed light on what support is helpful for improving their quality of life.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

25 survivors after curative lung cancer treatment and 17 caregivers underwent a face-to-face semi-structured, audio-recorded interview that was analysed using qualitative content analysis.

RESULTS

Especially burdened cancer survivors and caregivers described recurring anxiety before a follow-up appointment influencing their everyday life. At the same time, follow-up care also provided reassurance of still being healthy and helped regain a sense of security and control until the following scan. Despite possible long-term consequences in everyday life, the interviewees reported that the survivors´ psychosocial needs were not explicitly assessed or discussed. Nevertheless, the interviewees indicated that conversations with the physician were important for the success of "good" follow-up care.

CONCLUSION

Anxiety surrounding follow-up scans, also known as "scanxiety", is a common problem. In this study, we expanded on previous findings and found a positive aspect of scans, namely regaining a sense of security and control, which can strengthen the psychological well-being of the survivors and their families. To optimize follow-up care and improve the quality of life of lung cancer survivors and caregivers, strategies to integrate psychosocial care, like the introduction of survivorship care plans or increased use of patient-reported outcomes, should be explored in the future.

[Survivorship care plans for cancer patients: the importance of risk stratification, self-management and health literacy in the age of digital care]

In Deutschland wie allen anderen Industrieländern weltweit nimmt mit einer älter werdenden Bevölkerung und einer verbesserten Krebsfrüherkennung, Diagnostik und onkologischen Behandlung die Zahl der Patienten, die geheilt werden oder lange Zeit mit der Erkrankung leben, deutlich zu (Cancer Survivors). Ein Leben mit und nach einer Krebserkrankung bedeutet für viele Patienten ein Leben mit körperlichen und psychosozialen krankheits- und behandlungsbedingten Langzeit- und Spätfolgen. Angesichts des demografischen Wandels, der steigenden Krebsprävalenz sowie des medizinischen Fortschritts ist eine der dringenden Fragen, wie eine qualitativ hochwertige individualisierte und gleichzeitig finanzierbare Krebsversorgung für älter werdende, häufig multimorbide Patienten sichergestellt werden kann.

Diese Entwicklungen erfordern neben einer Stärkung der Krebsprävention die Erforschung und Umsetzung einer individualisierten Nachsorge im Rahmen von Survivorship-Care-Programmen (SCP). Übergreifende Zielsetzung von SCP ist es, den körperlichen wie psychosozialen Langzeit- und Spätfolgen vorzubeugen bzw. diese zu minimieren, die Mortalität zu senken sowie die Lebensqualität von Patienten zu verbessern. Die Evidenz zur Wirksamkeit von SCP hinsichtlich der Verbesserung patientenberichteter Endpunkte ist bislang nicht eindeutig. Die Bereitstellung von maßgeschneiderten Informationen sowie von risikomodifizierenden und bedarfsorientierten Angeboten auf der Basis einer Risikostratifizierung wird als zentraler Bestandteil bei der Implementierung von SCP angesehen. Dabei nimmt die Förderung von Selbstmanagement- und Gesundheitskompetenzen der Patienten, insbesondere vor dem Hintergrund der Zunahme von digitalen Gesundheitsanwendungen, einen hohen Stellenwert ein.