Patient and Family Caregiver Considerations When Selecting Early Breast Cancer Treatment: Implications for Clinical Pathway Development

Contralateral Prophylactic Mastectomy Decision-Making: The Partners' Perspective

BACKGROUND

The rate of contralateral prophylactic mastectomy (CPM) continues to rise despite no improvement in survival, an increased risk of surgical complications, and negative effects on quality of life. This study explored the experiences of the partners of women who undergo CPM.

METHODS

This study was part of an investigation into the factors motivating women with early-stage unilateral breast cancer and low genetic risk to opt for contralateral prophylactic mastectomy (CPM). Participating women were asked for permission to invite their partners to take part in interviews. In-depth interviews with partners were conducted using a semi-structured topic guide. A thematic analysis of the data was performed RESULTS: Of 35 partners, all men, 15 agreed to be interviewed. Most perceived their role to be strong and logical. Some hoped their wives would choose a bilateral mastectomy. All felt strongly that the final decision was up to their partners. The partners often framed the decision for CPM as one of life or death. Thus, any aesthetic effects were unimportant by comparison. The male partners had difficulty grasping the physical and emotional changes inherent in mastectomy, which made communicating about sexuality and intimacy very challenging for the couples. In the early recovery period, some noted the stress of managing home life.

CONCLUSIONS

The experiences of the male partners provide insight into how couples navigate complex treatment decision-making, both together and separately. There may be a benefit to including partners in pre- and post-surgical counseling to mitigate miscommunication regarding the expected oncologic and emotional outcomes related to CPM.

Reviewing next of kin regrets in surgical decision-making: cross-sectional analysis of systematically searched literature

BACKGROUND

Decision-making concerning relatives undergoing surgery is challenging. It remains unclear to what extent implicated next of kin eventually regret their decisions and how this regret is assessed. Our aim was to systematically review the literature on decisional regret of next of kin and to describe the assessment tools used and the surgical populations studied.

METHODS

We included interventional or observational, quantitative or qualitative studies reporting the measurement of decisional regret of next of kin concerning relatives undergoing surgery. We searched a variety of databases without restriction on publication year. We assessed the quality of reporting of quantitative studies using the NIH Quality Assessment Tool for Observational Cohort and Cross-Sectional Studies and of qualitative studies using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program Checklist.

RESULTS

Thirteen cross-sectional, five prospective cohorts and five qualitative studies matched our inclusion criteria. In 18 studies (78%), patients were children, in five (22%), young or middle-aged adults. No study included elderly or frail patients. Thirteen studies (57%) used the original Decision Regret Scale which was validated for patients, but not for next of kin. Only 3 of the 18 (17%) quantitative studies and only one of the 4 (25%) qualitative studies were rated as "good" in the quality assessment.

CONCLUSION

None of the retrieved studies used validated tools to assess the decisional regret of next of kin and none of them examined this issue in elderly or frail surgical patients.

The role of caregivers in the clinical pathway of patients newly diagnosed with breast and prostate cancer: A study protocol

Background

Caregivers may play a fundamental role in the clinical pathway of cancer patients. They provide emotional, informational, and functional support as well as practical assistance, and they might help mediate the interaction and communication with the oncologists when care options are discussed, or decisions are made. Little is known about the impact of dyadic dynamics on patient-doctor communication, patient's satisfaction, or adherence to the therapies. This study protocol aims to evaluate the efficacy of a psychological support intervention on patients-caregivers relationship and their alignment in the treatment decision-making (TDM) process and estimate related improvement in patient' compliance/adherence to treatments.

Methods

A total of 102 patients-caregivers' dyads will be involved, among breast and prostate cancer patients. The study entails a pre- post- evaluation through psychological questionnaires, with a randomization of participants in two conditions, the experimental one in which subjects participate in a psychological support consultation, and the control one, where dyads do not receive any intervention. A follow up after 6 months from the enrollment is planned.

Discussion

A positive impact of the psychological support intervention on patients' anxiety, depression, distress, and perceived social support is expected. Such improvements can directly affect patients' satisfaction and adherence to treatments. Data gathered from this study may inform health care providers, policy makers, and public health managers about the importance of caregiver's involvement in the cancer care pathway, and the best way to manage it. A further impact is to develop a specific intervention protocol to support caregivers' involvement in cancer care pathway, improve patient's wellbeing, the interaction with physicians and the compliance with the cancer treatment.

Effects of Family Participatory Nursing on Clinical Outcomes of Premature Infants in NICU and Families’ Psychological Status

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of family participatory nursing on the clinical outcomes of premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and their families’ psychological status. Total of 150 premature infants were admitted to the NICU of our hospital from December 2019 to December 2021, and their families were selected by convenience sampling method and divided into control group (n = 78, from December 2019 to December 2020) and observation group (n = 72, from January 2020 to December 2021) according to the admission time. The infants in the control group were given routine nursing, while those in the observation group received family participatory nursing. In the observation group, the length of stay and duration of oxygen therapy were shorter, the weight gain speed was higher, and the incidence rate of nosocomial infection was lower than those in control groups $\left(P<0.05\right)$ . The time of reaching full gastrointestinal feeding was earlier, the daily milk intake and exclusive breastfeeding rate were higher, and the feeding intolerance rate was lower in observation group than those in control group $\left(P<0.05\right)$ . Observation group exhibited significantly higher body weight, Z-value of body weight, NBNA score at 7 d after hospitalization, 15-month mental development index (MDI), and psychomotor development index (PDI) scores than control group $\left(P<0.05\right)$ . In addition, the families’ somatization, depression and anxiety factor scores, and total score of SCL-90 in the observation group were lower than those in the control group, while each dimension score and total score of MPOC-20 were higher than those in control groups $\left(P<0.05\right)$ . Family participatory nursing is of great significance in ameliorating the clinical outcomes of premature infants in the NICU, which can shorten the length of stay, improve feeding conditions, facilitate infant growth and development, and enhance their families’ psychological status and nursing satisfaction.

Patient involvement in clinical pathway development, implementation and evaluation - A scoping review of international literature

OBJECTIVE

Although various pathway design methods recognize patients as stakeholders, an overview of current practice is lacking. This article describes the results of a literature review assessing patient involvement in clinical cancer pathway development, implementation and evaluation.

METHODS

A scoping review was conducted following PRISMA-ScR. Two databases were searched to identify studies published in English between 2014 and 2021.

RESULTS

Of 12841articles identified 22 articles met the inclusion criteria and reported on one or more of the three phases: development phase (N = 2), implementation (N = 4), evaluation (N = 11), development/evaluation (N = 3), and implementation/evaluation (N = 2) of clinical pathways. The numbers of involved patients ranged from 10 to 793, and the reported methods varied considerably.

CONCLUSION

This review presents a synthesis of methods for involving patients in the clinical pathway lifecycle. No relationship was found between methods and the number of involved patients or between pathway complexity and methods. Although patients are seen as valuable stakeholders in the pathway design, to involve them in practice using the best practice can be improved.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The lack of a clear justification for the choice of methods and number of involved patients calls for further research and framework development to inform pathway developers.

Decision regret regarding treatments among women with early-stage breast cancer: a systematic review protocol

INTRODUCTION

Women with early-stage breast cancer (EBC) are commonly required to make treatment decisions. Decision regret regarding treatments is an adverse outcome that negatively affects women's psychological well-being and quality of life. A systematic review will be conducted to synthesise evidence about decision regret among women regarding treatments for EBC. The study will focus on levels of decision regret, what is regretted, and the factors associated with decision regret.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

A systematic review will be conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols 2015 checklist. Electronic databases, including CINAHL Complete, Embase, PubMed, Medline and Web of Science, will be searched for relevant articles published from 2000 to 2021. The reference lists of eligible studies will also be manually searched. All types of quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods studies that report on decision regret regarding treatments among women with EBC will be included. The primary outcome of this review will be women's levels of decision regret regarding breast cancer treatments. The secondary outcomes will include the content of their regrets, and the factors contributing to decision regret. The methodological quality of the studies will be assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute appraisal tools. Meta-analysis and thematic synthesis approaches will be used to synthesise quantitative and qualitative data, respectively. A convergent parallel approach will be used to integrate quantitative and qualitative findings.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

Ethical approval is not required for this systematic review. The findings of this work will be disseminated at international conferences and peer-reviewed journals. The findings of this systematic review will inform the development of decision interventions to improve the decision outcomes of breast cancer treatments.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42021260041.

Shared decision-making and the lessons learned about decision regret in cancer patients

The commentary presents reflections on the literature on post-treatment cancer patient regret. Even though a lot of effort has been made to increase patient satisfaction by engaging them in medical decisions, patient regret remains present in clinical settings. In our commentary, we identify three main aspects of shared decision-making that previously have been shown to predict patient regret. Based on these findings, we provide recommendations for physicians involved in the shared decision-making process. In addition, we make methodological suggestions for future research in the field.

Family members' experiences of the return to work of cancer survivors

Although family members play an important role in various aspects of coping with cancer and are significantly affected by it, little is known about their perspectives regarding return to work (RTW). This study explored attitudes and experiences of cancer survivors' family members related to cancer survivors' RTW. The present study consists of a qualitative research design, employing in-depth semistructured interviews with first-degree family members (N = 21) of cancer survivors who were approached through online social networks: spouses, children, parents and siblings. Grounded theory techniques were used for data analysis. Four themes emerged from the interviews: (a) the family's cautious voice in return-to-work decision making; (b) work-home imbalance; (c) inhibiting or promoting the effect of work on the recovery process and (d) expectations and appreciation of unconditional workplace support. The findings suggest that psychosocial and health care professionals should help family members play an active role in the decision of RTW. Professionals should also prepare family members for potential costs of RTW for the family and help them develop realistic expectations regarding workplace support of the cancer survivor.

A concept analysis of decision regret in women with breast cancer

The aim of this article is to understand the components of decision regret for women making breast cancer treatment decisions. Patient-centered care models encourage women to become more active in the decision-making process, inadvertently exposing them to the risk of experiencing decision regret. Enhancing the understanding of the concept of decision regret can offer insight into ways to mitigate this phenomenon. The Walker and Avant method was used to analyze this concept. Using PubMed, CINAHL, ERIC, Academic Search Complete, PsychINFO, SocINDEX, Joanna Briggs Institute of EBP Database, and an online dictionary, articles from 2011 to 2021 were analyzed to identify concept uses, attributes, antecedents, and consequences. Decision regret in women making breast cancer healthcare decisions is a negative cognitive-emotional response to a treatment decision that involves counterfactual thinking with three targets of regret: outcome regret, chosen option regret, and process regret. Experiencing decision regret can reduce a woman's quality of life, inflict psychological distress, and impact future decision-making. Unfavorable outcomes, decision uncertainty, and breakdowns in the decision-making process can lead to decision regret. Findings provide information on identifying women experiencing decision regret and illustrate opportunities to address causative factors through patient education and support to promote optimal patient outcomes.