• Karla T Washington, Kenneth C Pike, George Demiris, and Debra Parker Oliver.
• Department of Family and Community Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, MA306 Medical Sciences Building, DC032.00, Columbia, MO, 65212, USA, washingtonkar@health.missouri.edu.
• Support Care Cancer. 2015 Jul 1;23(7):2121-8.

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to describe the unique characteristics of informal hospice cancer caregiving.MethodsResearchers conducted a secondary analysis of data drawn from a randomized clinical trial of an informal hospice caregiving intervention (N = 348). Demographic characteristics and measures of the informal caregiving experience of hospice patients and their informal caregivers were compared based on the patient's diagnosis using chi-square tests for association of categorical variables and t tests for continuous variables.ResultsInformal caregivers of cancer patients differed from their non-cancer counterparts in a number of respects including patient age, caregiver age, patient residence, relationship between patient and caregiver, amount and duration of care provided, likelihood to incur out-of-pocket expenses related to patient care, caregiver problem-solving style, and impact on caregiver daily schedule. There were no statistically significant differences between cancer and non-cancer caregivers in terms of gender, race, employment status, anxiety, and quality of life.ConclusionsWhile cancer and non-cancer caregivers are similar in many respects, a number of unique features characterize the informal hospice cancer caregiving experience. Attention to these unique features will allow hospice providers to tailor supportive care interventions to better address cancer caregivers' needs.

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