Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer
-
Support Care Cancer · Feb 2013
Symptom clusters using the Spitzer quality of life index in patients with brain metastases--a reanalysis comparing different statistical methods.
The purpose of this paper is to determine whether the use of three different statistical methods influences the composition of symptom clusters derived from patients with brain metastases. ⋯ Symptom clusters vary with respect to occurrence, quantity, and composition based on the statistical method utilized to extract them. Further studies should be conducted to determine an ideal statistical method in order to select the optimal method to employ. The use of a single analytical method is essential for consistency and comparison purposes in future symptom cluster research.
-
Support Care Cancer · Feb 2013
In-advance end-of-life discussions and the quality of inpatient end-of-life care: a pilot study in bereaved primary caregivers of advanced cancer patients.
Advanced cancer care planning is encouraged to achieve individualized care. We hypothesized that in-advance end-of-life (EOL) discussions and establishment of do-not-resuscitate (DNR) status prior to the terminal admission would be associated with better quality of inpatient EOL care. ⋯ Advanced cancer patients may receive higher quality of inpatient EOL care if they had in-advance EOL discussions.
-
Support Care Cancer · Feb 2013
Cancer-related fatigue in Italian cancer patients: validation of the Italian version of the Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI).
Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is one of the most common symptoms experienced by cancer patients (CPs). The Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) is a reliable instrument to assess CRF in CPs. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the BFI (BFI-I). ⋯ BFI-I is a clinical instrument with satisfactory psychometric properties to assess CRF in Italian CPs.
-
Support Care Cancer · Feb 2013
Specific anticancer treatments in the last 3 months of life: a French experience.
The treatment of patients with advanced cancer is becoming increasingly aggressive near the end of life, whereas poor literature is available. This study analyzes the management of patients with a solid cancer in their last 3 months of life in the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besançon, France. ⋯ These preliminary data suggest that when evaluating the utilization of care at the end of life, one needs to take into account factors such as the age of the patient and the chemosensitivity of the tumor.
-
Patients' care has been associated with a high burden of psychological symptoms in caregivers. This study identifies characteristics associated with mood disorders in caregivers of cancer patients. ⋯ Prevalence of mood disorders is high in cancer patients' caregivers. These results highlight the need to develop family intervention strategies to minimize the impact of patient's care on caregivers' mental health.