The Role of Religiosity in Symptom Expression of Advanced Cancer Patients

2021 ◽  
pp. 104990912110413
Author(s):  
Sebastiano Mercadante ◽  
Claudio Adile ◽  
Marianna Ricci ◽  
Marco Maltoni ◽  
Giuseppe Bonanno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Social Relationship ◽  
Karnofsky Performance Status ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Symptom Expression ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale ◽  
Relevant Role

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the religious pattern and its impact on symptom expression in patients with advanced cancer. Methods: A consecutive sample of advanced cancer patients screened at admission to palliative care. Standard epidemiological data were recorded. Patients were asked about their religious beliefs, the degree of social relationship to existing religions, the role of religion in their life, and the frequency of their prayer. The Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) and Hospital Anxiety Depression scale (HADS) were assessed. Results: Two-hundred-eighty-three patients were screened. Age and gender were found to be independently correlated with religious belief (p = 0.042 and p = 0.016, respectively). Gender (females, p = 0.026), age (p = 0.003), lower Karnofsky performance status (KPS) (p = 0.022), and higher values of HADS-A (p = 0.003) were independently correlated with the degree of social relationship to existing religions. Gender (females, p = 0.002), lower KPS (p = 0.005), and higher values of HADS-A (p = 0.04) were independently correlated with a more relevant role of religiosity. Gender (females, p < 0.0005), lower KPS (p = 0.001), and drowsiness (p = 0.05) were independently correlated with frequency of prayer. Conclusion: The more the patients have demanding religious issues, the greater the state of anxiety, particularly in older and female patients with a lower KPS. The religious pattern did not have relevant role in the expression of other symptoms included in the ESAS.

scholarly journals Palliative Care and COVID-19 Pandemic: Retrospective Study of Factors Associated With Infection and Death at an Oncological Palliative Care Reference Center

2021 ◽  
pp. 104990912098696
Author(s):  
Livia Costa de Oliveira ◽  
Karla Santos da Costa Rosa ◽  
Ana Luísa Durante ◽  
Luciana de Oliveira Ramadas Rodrigues ◽  
Daianny Arrais de Oliveira da Cunha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Diabetes Mellitus ◽  
Palliative Care ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Karnofsky Performance Status ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Tumor Type ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Reactive Protein

Background: Advanced cancer patients are part of a group likely to be more susceptible to COVID-19. Aims: To describe the profile of advanced cancer inpatients to an exclusive Palliative Care Unit (PCU) with the diagnosis of COVID-19, and to evaluate the factors associated with death in these cases. Design: Retrospective cohort study with data from advanced cancer inpatients to an exclusive PCU, from March to July 2020, with severe acute respiratory syndrome. Diagnostic of COVID-19 and death were the dependent variables. Logistic regression analyses were performed, with the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: One hundred fifty-five patients were selected. The mean age was 60.9 (±13.4) years old and the most prevalent tumor type was breast (30.3%). Eighty-three (53.5%) patients had a diagnostic confirmation of COVID-19. Having diabetes mellitus (OR: 2.2; 95% CI: 1.1-6.6) and having received chemotherapy in less than 30 days before admission (OR: 3.8; 95% CI: 1.2-12.2) were associated factors to diagnosis of COVID-19. Among those infected, 81.9% died and, patients with Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) < 30% (OR: 14.8; 95% CI 2.7-21.6) and C-reactive protein (CRP) >21.6mg/L (OR: 9.3; 95% CI 1.1-27.8), had a greater chance of achieving this outcome. Conclusion: Advanced cancer patients who underwent chemotherapy in less than 30 days before admission and who had diabetes mellitus were more likely to develop Coronavirus 2019 disease. Among the confirmed cases, those hospitalized with worse KPS and bigger CRP were more likely to die.

Symptom expression in advanced cancer patients admitted to hospice or home care with and without delirium

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 515-520 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastiano Mercadante ◽  
Francesco Masedu ◽  
Marco Maltoni ◽  
Daniela De Giovanni ◽  
Luigi Montanari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Home Care ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Symptom Expression ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients

The Prognostic Role of Phase Angle in Advanced Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 813-824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mayane Marinho Esteves Pereira ◽  
Mariana dos Santos Campello Queiroz ◽  
Nathália Masiero Cavalcanti de Albuquerque ◽  
Juliana Rodrigues ◽  
Emanuelly Varea Maria Wiegert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Phase Angle ◽  
Prognostic Role ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients

Validation of the Brief Edinburgh Depression Scale (BEDS) in a Mexican population with advanced cancer in a palliative care service

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (04) ◽  
pp. 436-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar Rodríguez-Mayoral ◽  
Bárbara Rodríguez-Ortíz ◽  
Leticia Ascencio-Huertas ◽  
Adriana Peña-Nieves ◽  
Emma Verástegui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Major Depressive Disorder ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Case Finding ◽  
Spanish Language ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
Major Depressive ◽  
Palliative Patients

AbstractObjectiveDepression in palliative advanced cancer patients is common, but often goes unrecognized. One of the first steps toward improving detection is the development of tools that are valid in the specific language and setting in which they are to be used. The Brief Edinburgh Depression Scale (BEDS) is a sensitive case-finding tool for depression in advanced cancer patients that was developed in the United Kingdom. There are no validated instruments to identify depression in Mexican palliative patients. Our aim was to validate the Spanish-language version of the BEDS in Mexican population with advanced cancer.MethodWe conducted a cross-sectional study with outpatients from the palliative care unit at the Instituto Nacional de Cancerología in Mexico City. The Mexican BEDS was validated against a semistructured psychiatric clinical interview according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, classification criteria for major depressive disorder. The interviewer was blind to the BEDS score at the time of the assessment.ResultSeventy subjects completed the scale and interview. Women represented 71.4% of the sample and median age of subjects was 56.5 years (range, 20–85 years). The prevalence of major depressive disorder according to the psychiatric interview was 20%. The most valid cutoff for defining a case of depression was a score ≥5 of 18 on the Mexican BEDS, which gave a sensitivity of 85.7% and specificity of 62.5%. The scale's Cronbach's alpha was 0.71.Significance of resultsMajor depressive disorder is frequent in Mexican palliative patients. The Spanish-language Mexican version of the BEDS is the first valid case-finding tool in advanced cancer patients in this setting.

Use of parenteral nutrition in patients with advanced cancer

2008 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isaac Soo ◽  
Leah Gramlich
Keyword(s):  
Parenteral Nutrition ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Bowel Obstruction ◽  
Karnofsky Performance Status ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Intestinal Failure ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
End Stage ◽  
Northern Alberta

The purpose of this study is to describe patient-related variables in a cohort of advanced cancer patients (ACPs) enrolled in a home parenteral nutrition (HPN) program. This study reviewed the cohort of ACPs enrolled in the Northern Alberta Home Total Parenteral Nutrition Program (NAHTPNP). Thirty-eight ACPs received HPN during the study period, 24% of all patients admitted for PN. Of these, 27 (71%) were female. Mean age was 48.76 y (SD 13.8 y). Bowel obstruction was the most common indication for initiating HPN (84%, 32) and ovarian cancer was the most common malignancy (34%, 13). Patients who began HPN with a Karnofsky performance status (KPS) of greater than 50 (median of 70) were found to have a longer duration of life (median: 6 months) compared with patients who began HPN with a KPS of 50 or below (median = 50; median 3 months; p = 0.01; two-tailed). There was no difference in survival between malignancy type (p = NS). Advanced cancer is the fastest growing indication for enrollment in the HPN program. ACP demonstrated a 3% average annual increase proportionate to all indications for HPN starts, accounting for 7%–48% of HPN starts from 1999–2006. HPN is an increasingly used therapy for patients with advanced cancer, most commonly for intestinal failure in the setting of bowel obstruction. Initiation of HPN at a higher KPS was associated with a longer duration of life. Further studies are needed to validate the use of TPN in end-stage cancer patients.

Placebo and nocebo effects in randomized double-blind clinical trials for fatigue in advanced cancer patients

2009 ◽  
Vol 27 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 9640-9640
Author(s):  
M. de la Cruz ◽  
D. Hui ◽  
H. A. Parsons ◽  
P. Lynn ◽  
C. Parker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trials ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Randomized Clinical Trials ◽  
Placebo Response ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale ◽  
Nocebo Effects

9640 Background: We have previously reported significant placebo response in randomized controlled treatment trials for cancer related fatigue (CRF). We conducted a retrospective study to determine the frequency and predictors of response to placebo and nocebo effect in patients with CRF. Methods: We reviewed patients that received placebo in two previous randomized clinical trials conducted by our group and determined the proportion of patients who demonstrated clinical response to fatigue using an increase (ΔFACIT-F score) > 7 from baseline to day 8, and those with nocebo response as those who reported side effects. Baseline patient characteristics and symptoms recorded from the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) were analyzed to determine their association with placebo and nocebo effects. Results: A total of 105 advanced cancer patients received placebo. 59 (56%) patients responded to placebo (median Δ FACIT-F score of 22). Worse baseline anxiety and well-being subscale score (univariate) and well-being (multivariate, MR) were significantly associated with placebo response. Common side effects reported were insomnia (79%), anorexia (53%), nausea (38%) and restlessness (34%). MR analysis showed that worse baseline (ESAS) sleep, appetite, nausea, and restless are associated with increased reporting of these side effects ( Table ). Conclusions: Nearly half of advanced cancer patients enrolled in the fatigue trials responded to placebo. Worse physical well-being score was associated with placebo response. Patients experiencing specific symptoms at baseline were more likely to report these as side effects of the medication. These findings should be considered in fatigue clinical trial design. [Table: see text] No significant financial relationships to disclose.

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