Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer
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To validate the Brazilian version of the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI-B) scale and to determine the optimal cutpoints for mild, moderate, and severe pain based on patients' rating of their worst pain. ⋯ Our data show that BPI-B is a brief, useful, and valid tool for assessing pain and its impact on patient's life.
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Support Care Cancer · Apr 2011
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudySimulation-based training improves applied clinical placement of ultrasound-guided PICCs.
Skilled placement of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) has a profound impact on patient well-being and costs of care. The use of ultrasound-guided methods and prescribed training for cannulation skills are evidence-based practice recommendations. The purpose of this study was to compare two methods of PICC instruction on the acquisition of applied skills. ⋯ These results support the use of prescribed simulation-based training for the acquisition of requisite skills associated with PICC placement and expand on similar studies that suggest the advantages of simulation-based training for central line placement. Additionally, the data suggest that training using a single simulation model may support the acquisition of both central venous catheterization and PICC skills.
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Support Care Cancer · Apr 2011
Impact of colony-stimulating factors to reduce febrile neutropenic events in breast cancer patients receiving docetaxel plus cyclophosphamide chemotherapy.
Data from US Oncology Adjuvant Trial 9735 has shown that four cycles of docetaxel plus cyclophosphamide (TC) improved disease-free and overall survival when compared against doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (AC) in early-stage breast cancer. The febrile neutropenia (FN) rate was 4% in this study without primary granulocyte colony-stimulating factors (G-CSF) prophylaxis. However, the incidence of docetaxel-induced myelosuppression is recognized to be higher among Asian population. Hence, this study was designed to evaluate the impact of G-CSF to reduce FN-related events in Asian cancer patients treated with TC. ⋯ Our findings indicate that TC was associated with higher rates of FN than reported in the clinical trial. The 25% incidence fulfills the requirement of primary prophylaxis with G-CSF. Routine administration of G-CSF is highly recommended to reduce the rates of FN in breast cancer patients receiving TC.
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Support Care Cancer · Apr 2011
Caregiver satisfaction with out-patient oncology services: utility of the FAMCARE instrument and development of the FAMCARE-6.
To evaluate caregivers' experience of oncology services for ambulatory patients and to develop a short instrument (FAMCARE-6) suitable for computerised administration in the clinical setting. ⋯ FAMCARE-6 can be used to assess caregiver satisfaction with ambulatory oncology services and may be suitable to be included as part of a computerised screening system for the psychological care of oncology patients.
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Support Care Cancer · Apr 2011
Risk factors to predict outcome in critically ill cancer patients receiving chemotherapy in the intensive care unit.
The decision to start chemotherapy in critically ill cancer patients is extremely complex in the intensive care unit (ICU). Therefore, this study evaluated the outcomes and prognostic factors in critically ill cancer patients receiving chemotherapy in the ICU. ⋯ Chemotherapy in the ICU for critically ill cancer patients can be considered even when infection or organ failure is present. However, the severity of organ failure, including respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation, was associated with an increased mortality after chemotherapy during an ICU stay.