Canadian oncology nursing journal = Revue canadienne de nursing oncologique
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To determine the extent to which personal characteristics and "person factors" predict symptom distress during the first cycle of chemotherapy. ⋯ Women who maintained a positive outlook, and trusted their health care providers experienced lower levels of symptom distress. Findings suggest that most women experienced some symptom distress, particularly during the middle of the first cycle of chemotherapy.
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For children with cancer, being hospitalized represents a great source of stress. Hospitalized children are not only deprived of their familiar and comforting world, but they must also face various and often painful treatments. They must quickly adapt to new people and to an environment that is very different from that of their homes. ⋯ The experience described in this article is a one-year pilot project completed on a pediatric oncology unit. A priori, an already very heavy workload, the vulnerability of the patients, and many constraints added to the concerns related to the presence of animals on a tertiary care unit. A postiori, the rigorous design and implementation process of the pilot project, the strong involvement and engagement of volunteers and professionals, the quality of the participating "therapeutic" dogs, the originality of the entire process, and the satisfaction of the patients and nursing staff contributed to its success and to establishing the basis for a permanent implementation of this special care program for children hospitalized with cancer.
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Children living with cancer must cope with the disease, frequent hospitalizations, aggressive treatments and numerous treatment side effects. Combined, these stressors can lead to adverse biopsychosocial effects. An animal therapy program called "A Magical Dream" was instituted for children hospitalized in pediatric oncology to promote their well-being during hospitalization and facilitate their adaptation to the therapeutic process. ⋯ Animal therapy is defined as a clinical method aiming to promote the natural and healing bonds that exist between humans and animals, both for preventive and therapeutic reasons (Daoust, 1987). The rationale behind this practice is that animals naturally stimulate an attraction and involvement response in humans (Brodie & Biley, 1999), which is then reflected in the person's well-being. As well-being is inconsistent with the state of emotional distress, animal-assisted therapy may be a beneficial intervention to alleviate distress in the child, his family and caregivers.
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Managing bowel obstruction in ovarian cancer using a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube.
An estimated 2,500 women were diagnosed with and 1,500 died from ovarian cancer in Canada in 2002. Up to 42% of patients in the palliative phase develop a malignant bowel obstruction. Options for management include medical therapy, surgery, and/or a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube. ⋯ A retrospective review of 24 patient records revealed that 75% did not have nausea/vomiting by time of discharge; 92% resumed a clear fluid diet; 83% were discharged from the acute care setting; and 70% did not require re-admission. A PEG tube may effectively palliate women with non-operable bowel obstruction in advanced/recurrent cancer of the ovary. Opportunities for improving care are presented.
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Despite the finding that each child and family experienced cancer in their own unique way, they all shared the need to maintain a sense of spirit. Just as the suffering united the families, so too did their sense of spirit. Talk of the spirit is not foreign in the pediatric oncology literature. ⋯ We could learn from the families we care for with respect to how to nurture our spirits and the spirits of those close to us. Taking care, holding on to the belief, taking one day at a time, and so on, are all strategies that we could learn to incorporate more frequently into our daily lives. May a part of the spirits of those we care for be with us and live on in us forever, because their lingering spirits are sources of hope and strength, as this mother reinforced.