Palliative Care Health Needs Assessment of Breast Cancer Patients Attending the Oncology Clinics of a Private Hospital in Southwest Nigeria

Objective Depression has historically been an underdiagnosed and undertreated condition with a large impact on patient quality of life. Screening and diagnosis of depression may differ for various reasons, making proper diagnosis and treatment difficult. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, we analyzed the associations between the prevalence of depression and patient-specific factors in gynecologic and breast cancer patients who had received a palliative care consult. This study was conducted in a single institution that specializes in women and infant care. The primary objective was to quantify the prevalence of depression among palliative care patients. The secondary objective was to determine patient specific factors associated with a diagnosis of depression. Results Over the course of the one year inclusion period, a total of 73 patients met inclusion criteria. The prevalence of depression in this study was found to be 54.8%. A diagnosis of anxiety was associated with the presence of depression (77.5% vs 25%, p < 0. 0001). Cancer of the fallopian tube was also independently associated with depression (12. 5% vs 0, p = 0. 44). Conclusion The prevalence of depression for palliative care patients, specifically for patients with gynecologic and breast malignancies, in this study was higher than estimates of depression prevalence for the general population. The results of this study may indicate that a greater awareness of the need for screening and treatment of depression is necessary in this population, in order to properly diagnose and treat patients with depression.

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Pengkajian dan Symptom Mangement Pada Pasien Dengan Fungating Breast Cancer di Pelayanan Perawatan Paliatif: Literature Review

Journal of Holistic Nursing Science ◽

10.31603/nursing.v8i1.3942 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 61-74

Author(s):

Yodang Yodang ◽

Nuridah Nuridah

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Palliative Care ◽

Literature Review ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Breast Cancer Incidence ◽

Assessment Tools ◽

Advanced Stage ◽

Breast Cancer Patients ◽

Palliative Care Setting ◽

Palliative Care Services

Currently, cancer includes breast cancer is a predominant disease treated in palliative care services. Breast cancer incidence increased significantly during the last decade and can progress to a late or advanced stage. At this advanced stage, the incidence of the fungating wound occurs in 5-10% of breast cancer patients. The study aims to identify assessment and symptoms management of fungating breast cancer in the palliative care setting. This study applied a literature review method. Searching for articles using 4 journal databases including DOAJ, Google Scholar, Proquest, and Science Direct. 17 articles that met the inclusion criteria of the study. The literature review identifies that the assessment tools are holistic assessment methods, wound assessment charts, and time framework assessments. The major symptoms are mal-odor, pain, exudation, peri-wound maceration and bleeding, psychological and spiritual issues. The studies, which focus on assessment and symptoms management of fungating breast cancer was limited. This affects the comprehensiveness of the review study. Investigation on quality of life among fungating breast cancer patients shortly is needed.

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