Nurse's Roles in Colorectal Cancer Prevention: A Narrative Review

Latent Profile Analysis and Related Factors of Colorectal Cancer Knowledge and Health Beliefs and Their Associations With Screening Behavior and Intention Among Urban Populations in China

BACKGROUND

Colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence is rising in urban China, and screening participation remains low. Understanding the influence of knowledge and health beliefs on CRC screening behaviors can inform targeted interventions.

OBJECTIVE

To identify latent profiles of CRC knowledge and health beliefs among average-risk urban adults in China and examine factors influencing profile membership.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted with 500 urban adults, utilizing validated questionnaires on CRC knowledge and health beliefs. Latent profile analysis identified distinct profiles, and multinomial logistic regression assessed sociodemographic predictors.

RESULTS

Three profiles emerged: profile 1, "moderately informed and believing" (48.0%, n = 240); profile 2, "underinformed and skeptical" (18.8%, n = 94); and profile 3, "well-informed and strongly believing" (33.2%, n = 166). Unstable employment and low health literacy predicted membership in profile 2, whereas higher social support and proximity to health centers were associated with profile 3. Profile 2 negatively predicted screening behavior (β = -0.516) and intention (β = -0.786), whereas profile 3 showed positive associations (β = 0.541 and β = 0.969, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

These findings highlight distinct CRC knowledge and health belief profiles, suggesting that tailored interventions addressing subgroup-specific gaps and barriers could enhance CRC screening engagement in urban China.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Nurses can efficiently identify at-risk populations through brief assessments of employment status, health literacy, and social support and implement targeted interventions such as patient navigation, simplified health education, and social support enhancement to improve screening uptake.

Effect of a telephone-based perioperative nurse-led counselling programme on unmet needs, quality of life and sexual function in colorectal cancer patients: A non-randomised quasi-experimental study

PURPOSE

To investigate the effect of perioperative nurse-led counselling intervention on unmet needs, sexual function and quality of life in colorectal cancer patients.

METHOD

This quasi-experimental study included 82 patients who underwent colorectal cancer surgery (control n = 45, intervention n = 37). The telephone-based perioperative nurse-led counselling intervention, which contained implementation, follow-up, and assessment, was applied to start from pre-surgery to post-surgery 3rd month. Data were collected with the Unmet Needs of Cancer Survivors Scale, European Organisation for Treatment and Research of Cancer Quality of Life Scale-30, Colorectal-29, Female Sexual Function Index, and International Index of Erectile Function pre- and post-surgery 3rd-6th months. The control data was collected before the pandemic, and the intervention group throughout the pandemic. The Mann-Whitney-U, Wilcoxon rank test was used.

RESULTS

Compared to the control group, intervention group patients reported lower unmet and total needs scores (p = 0.000); higher quality of life (p = 0.000), physical, emotional (p = 0.000), role (p = 0.001), and social functioning scores (p = 0.002); lower fatigue (p = 0.000), constipation (p = 0.034), pain (p = 0.018), nausea-vomiting (p = 0.004), and insomnia scores (p = 0.003); and higher body image, anxiety (p = 0.000) and weight scores (p = 0.003), lower urinary frequency buttock pain (p = 0.000), dysuria (p = 0.001), abdominal pain (p = 0.001), fluctuance (p = 0.000), stool frequency (p = 0.002), and faecal incontinence (p = 0.006) scores at the sixth month (p < 0.05). There were no statistically significant differences between male and female sexual function scores (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Perioperative nurse-led counselling reduced unmet needs and increased the overall quality of life by decreasing symptom levels but did not affect sexual health outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer surgery.