Spiritual and Emotional Experience With a Diagnosis of Breast Cancer: A Scoping Review

Preparing for Cancer: A Qualitative Study of Hispanic Patient and Caregiver Needs

BACKGROUND

Cancer disproportionately affects Hispanic populations, yet the preparedness of Hispanic caregiver-patient dyads facing cancer remains understudied. This study aims to identify essential components of preparedness needs and inform future psychosocial interventions for this demographic.

METHODS

Secondary analyses were conducted utilizing focus groups to develop a communication intervention for Hispanic patients and caregivers. Transcripts were qualitatively analyzed using NVivo v12 (2020).

RESULTS

Analysis revealed symptom management and treatment comprehension as pivotal aspects of preparation. Additionally, preparedness among our sample emerged by addressing the multifaceted dimensions of preparedness, including psychological, emotional, educational, familial, practical, financial, and spiritual aspects.

CONCLUSIONS

Tailoring interventions encompassing diverse dimensions of preparedness can foster inclusivity and maximize their impact on supportive measures. This underscores the necessity for culturally sensitive approaches when delivering interventions supporting Hispanic individuals navigating the challenges of cancer.

The Role of Spirituality for Coping with Cancer and the Spiritual Care Needs of Women with Breast Cancer and their Family Caregivers in Turkey: A Qualitative Study

This study aims at determining the spiritual care needs of women with breast cancer and their family caregivers, as well as the effect of spirituality on coping with this illness. This qualitative research utilized a phenomenological design. In-depth individual interviews were conducted with breast cancer women and family caregivers. A total of 26 participants (13 women with breast cancer and 13 family caregivers) were involved. The data were examined using inductive thematic analysis. Three main themes were identified: "Being diagnosed with breast cancer; its emotional and life-related impacts;" "Spirituality in fighting with cancer;" and "Caring period and needs". The results showed that the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer have multifaceted effects on women and their family caregivers. Spirituality was found to be an essential factor in coping with cancer for women with cancer and their family caregivers. In addition, the results showed that women and family caregivers have some unmet spiritual care needs.

The effectiveness of pretreatment video-based psychoeducation for patients with breast cancer

OBJECTIVES

This study confirms the effectiveness of pretreatment video-based psychoeducation on stress management and relaxation in reducing depression, anxiety, and uncertainty among patients with breast cancer.

METHODS

We conducted a nonrandomized trial with 86 pretreatment patients with breast cancer who were divided equally into intervention and control groups, and stratified according to cancer stages and patient ages. Omitting the excluded participants, 35 intervention group and 36 control group participants were asked to complete the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and Universal Uncertainty in Illness Scale (UUIS) before the psychoeducational intervention (baseline, hereafter "BL ") as well as 1 and 3 months later. Then, a 2 group (intervention and control groups) × 3 time points (BL and 1 and 3 months post-intervention) mixed models repeated measures (MMRM) analysis was implemented.

RESULTS

Analysis confirmed interaction between 2 group × 3 time points for depression, anxiety, and UUIS. Multiple comparisons revealed that each score in the intervention group was significantly lower 1 and 3 months post-intervention compared to BL. Meanwhile, in the control group, the depression score was significantly higher at 3 months post-intervention compared to pre-intervention. The anxiety scores and UUIS of the same group were not significantly different between 1 and 3 months post-intervention. The effect size values 3 months post-intervention were -0.57 for depression, -0.25 for anxiety, and 0.05 for uncertainty.

SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS

Pretreatment psychoeducation reduced depression, anxiety, and uncertainty in the intervention group of patients with breast cancer compared to the control group. The effect sizes at 3 months post-intervention were moderate for depression and small for anxiety. These results suggest the effectiveness of psychoeducation for patients with breast cancer, using videos on stress management and relaxation, early at the pretreatment stage.

Spiritual distress and religious involvement among cancer patients receiving chemotherapy: A longitudinal study

PURPOSE

To determine the trajectories of spiritual distress and religious involvement among cancer patients during chemotherapy.

METHODS

A prospective longitudinal study was conducted over 15 months with quarterly data collection, in a total of with five cut points. Data collection was applied a questionnaire that embraced sociodemographic characteristics, clinical profile, Spiritual Distress Scale, and Belief into Action Scale. Regarding, data analysis was performed univariate, bivariate, and multivariate statistics, and the study was approved by the Ethics Committee.

FINDINGS

From the 322 cancer patients at the beginning, the attrition rate was 17.5% in the last time point. Most of participants were women (56.6%), with an average age of 60.3 years, and had a religious affiliation (93.7%). Statistically significant values were found of spiritual distress and religious involvement across the five cuts. At the end of 3 months after starting chemotherapy, the highest value of spiritual distress and the lowest value of religious involvement were reached.

CONCLUSIONS

Cancer patients who are submitted to chemotherapy, after 3 months of treatment experience the peak of spiritual distress and the lowest value of religious involvement. This critical period for nurses' is required a massive approach regarding spiritual and religious needs.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

Therefore, knowing the trajectories of spiritual distress and religious involvement during a certain period allows for the anticipating of planning of nursing therapeutic interventions in order to promote spiritual health and spiritual well-being outcomes in cancer patients.

The Importance of Spirituality for Women Facing Breast Cancer Diagnosis: A Qualitative Study

Breast cancer remains significantly distressing and produces profound changes in women’s lives. Spirituality is an important resource at the time of diagnosis and treatment decisions. This qualitative study aimed to explore the spiritual experience of women diagnosed with breast cancer and the considerations of spirituality in health care using the existential phenomenology approach. The sampling procedure was intentional, based on the study’s exclusion and inclusion criteria. Forty women participated in individual interviews. The research was conducted in the outpatient clinic of a reference federal university hospital in South-Eastern Brazil. Throughout the research process, ethical principles were carefully followed. Five themes were identified: (1) meaning of spirituality–source of spiritual strength, (2) well-being in the relationship with God, (3) well-being in religious fellowship, (4) values and purpose of life–meaning in life, and (5) spirituality as a foundation to continue. Respect for patient’s spiritual values was recognised as a fundamental principle in health care. Spirituality was revealed as a source of support during the complex process of being diagnosed with breast cancer. Thus, health care professionals that value and encourage spirituality are needed, favouring better patient response to the diagnosis.

The value of different imaging methods in the diagnosis of breast cancer: A protocol for network meta-analysis of diagnostic test accuracy

BACKGROUND

: Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in women all over the world and the second most common cause of cancer-related mortality. Imaging examination plays an important role in the diagnosis of early breast cancer. Due to different imaging principles and methods, all kinds of examinations have their advantages and disadvantages. It is particularly important for clinicians to choose these examination methods reasonably to achieve the best diagnostic effect. The objectives of this systematic review and NMA are to determine the diagnostic accuracy of imaging technologies for breast cancer and to compare the diagnostic accuracy of different index tests and to support guidelines development and clinical practice.

METHODS

: PubMed, Embase.com, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, and SinoMed will be searched to identify relevant studies up to August 31, 2021. We will include random controlled trials, cross-sectional studies, case-control studies, and cohort studies that evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of different imaging diagnostic methods for breast cancer. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 quality assessment tool will be used to assess the risk of bias in each study. Standard pairwise meta-analysis and NMA will be performed using STATA V.12.0, MetaDiSc 1.40, and R 3.4.1 software to compare the diagnostic efficacy of different imaging diagnostic methods. Subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses will be conducted to investigate the sources of heterogeneity.

RESULTS

: The results of this study will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

CONCLUSION

: This study will comprehensively evaluate the accuracy of different imaging diagnostic methods in the diagnosis of breast cancer. The results of this study will provide high-quality evidence to support clinical practice and guidelines development.