Il livello di speranza nei pazienti oncologici in cura chemioterapica. Un’indagine sperimentale / The level of hope in the cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. An experimental investigation

2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 525-543
Author(s):  
Melissa Maioni

La speranza è una caratteristica multidimensionale che coinvolge diverse dimensioni umane, il cui costrutto è stato più volte studiato in molteplici ambiti disciplinari. Il presente studio si propone di: valutare l’impatto della patologia in relazione al livello di speranza; comparare il livello di speranza con altre variabili cliniche e socio-demografiche, attraverso lo studio di 83 pazienti oncologici del Policlinico Campus Bio-Medico di Roma in cura chemioterapica, e di 83 soggetti sani, con caratteristiche socio-demografiche comparabili al campione clinico, a cui sono state sottoposte due scale: l’HHI (Herth Hope Scale) e la SF-12 (Questionario sullo stato di salute). L’analisi statistica utilizzata è finalizzata a valutare l’interdipendenza lineare tra le due variabili considerate (la speranza e lo stato di salute) sulla popolazione in generale e nelle sottopopolazioni considerate, tramite il calcolo dell’indice R2. I risultati mostrano che: a) il campione sperimentale composto per l’84,3% da pazienti affetti da cancro al IV stadio, ha mediamente un medio livello di speranza (media ± es = 35.47 ± 0.78); b) non emerge una correlazione significativa tra lo stato di salute e il livello di speranza; c) non emergono differenze significative riguardo il livello di speranza, mentre emergono delle differenze significative relativamente alla PCS (stato di salute fisica). I dati raccolti indicherebbero come la speranza sia una dimensione indipendente dalla diagnosi, dalla stadiazione della patologia, dal sesso, dal tipo di ospedalizzazione, dallo stato civile e non si modifichi nelle varie fasce d’età. Sembrerebbe un costrutto che si mantiene stabile nel tempo e che viene scarsamente influenzato da altre variabili. ---------- Hope is a multidimensional characteristic that involves different human dimensions, the construction of which has been studied several times in multiple disciplinary fields. The present study aims to: assess the impact of the pathology in relation to the level of hope; compare the level of hope with other clinical and socio-demographic variables, through the study of 83 cancer patients receiving chemotherapy at the Policlinico Campus Bio-Medico in Rome, and 83 healthy subjects, with socio-demographic characteristics comparable to the clinical sample, who were given two scales: the HHI (Herth Hope Index) and the SF-12 (SF-12 Health Survey). The statistical analysis used is aimed at assessing the linear interdependence between the two variables under consideration (hope and health) for the general population and the subpopulations under consideration, by calculating the R2 index. The results show that: a) the experimental sample, 84.3% of which was composed of stage IV cancer patients, had an average hope level (mean ± es = 35.47 ± 0.78); b) there was no significant correlation between health and hope; c) there were no significant differences in hope levels, while there were significant differences in physical health (PCS). The data collected would indicate that hope is a dimension independent of diagnosis, disease stage, sex, type of hospitalization, marital status and does not change in the various age groups. It would seem to be a construct that remains stable over time and is poorly influenced by other variables.

Author(s):  
Avery Caz Glover ◽  
Courtney Schroeder ◽  
Emma Ernst ◽  
Tamara Vesel

Purpose: Timely advance care discussions are essential components of quality care for diverse populations; however, little is known about these conversations among Chinese American cancer patients. This exploratory study describes differences in advance care discussions and planning between Chinese American and White advanced cancer patients. Methods: We collected data for 63 Chinese American and 63 White stage IV cancer patients who died between 2013 and 2018. We compared: frequency and timing of prognosis, goals of care (GOC), and end-of-life care (EOLC) discussions in the final year of life; family inclusion in discussions; healthcare proxy (HCP) identification; do not resuscitate (DNR) order, do not intubate (DNI) order, and other advance directive (AD) completion. We did not conduct statistical tests due to the study’s exploratory nature. Results: Among Chinese American and White patients, respectively, 76% and 71% had prognosis, 51% and 56% had GOC, and 89% and 84% had EOLC discussions. Prognosis, GOC, and EOLC discussions were held a median of 34.0, 15.5, and 34.0 days before death among Chinese American and 17.0, 13.0, and 24.0 days before death among White patients. Documentation rates among Chinese American and White patients were 79% and 76% for DNRs, 81% and 71% for DNIs, 79% and 81% for HCPs, and 52% and 40% for other ADs. Conclusions: Findings suggest that Chinese Americans had similar rates of advance care discussions, completed conversations earlier, and had similar to higher rates of AD documentation compared to White patients. Further studies are needed to confirm our preliminary findings.


2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (28_suppl) ◽  
pp. 145-145
Author(s):  
Catherine R. Fedorenko ◽  
Karma L. Kreizenbeck ◽  
Li Li ◽  
Laura Elizabeth Panattoni ◽  
Veena Shankaran ◽  
...  

145 Background: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted medical care, including routine cancer screening for breast, colorectal, lung and cervical cancers. We aimed to investigate the impact of the pandemic on stage at diagnosis for cancer patients. Methods: Using data from the Washington State SEER records we compared AJCC stage for patients diagnosed with cancer in 2017-2019 to 2020 for two time periods, March to June (initial pandemic months) and July to December (later pandemic months). Patients were included if they were age 18+, diagnosed with a solid tumor, and not diagnosed at autopsy. Results: In the early phase of the pandemic, March – June 2020, there was a shift to cancers being diagnosed at a later stage compared to the same time period in 2017-2019 (Stage III: 13.5% to 14.9%, Stage IV: 16.2% to 19.7%). There was also a decrease in cancer diagnoses for cancers that are often detected through routine screening. As a percentage of all cancer diagnoses, both melanoma (13.2% to 9.8%) and colon cancer diagnoses (7.2% to. 6.7%) decreased during the early pandemic. In the later phase of the pandemic, July to December 2020, the stage at diagnosis showed an indication of returning to pre-pandemic levels with an increase in the proportion of early stage cancers (In situ: 16.6% to 19.3%, Stage I: 38.8% to 41.1%). Stage at diagnosis trends varied by tumor type. For colorectal cancer, the overall number of diagnoses decreased during the initial pandemic months. Stage I diagnoses decreased and Stage IV cancer diagnoses increased in both early and late stages of the pandemic. Conclusions: In Washington State, the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on stage at diagnosis potentially caused by delays or interruptions in medical care. Additional studies are needed to understand how this shift in stage at diagnosis impacted treatment and outcomes for patients.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
Noorwati Sutandyo ◽  
Lyana Setiawan

Pendahuluan. Hiperkoagulasi merupakan faktor yang mendasari tingginya mortalitas akibat kejadian tromboemboli vena pada pasien kanker. Kemoterapi merupakan salah satu faktor yang diduga berkontribusi terhadap status hiperkoagulasi pada pasien kanker. Studi ini bertujuan untuk mengevaluasi perubahan status koagulasi yang ditandai dengan kadar D-dimer pada pasien kanker yang menjalani kemoterapi.Metode. Studi ini merupakan studi kohort prospektif di Pusat Kanker Nasional Indonesia yang melibatkan pasien kanker yang sudah terkonfirmasi melalui pemeriksaan histopatologi, dan memulai kemoterapi pada periode Mei hingga Juli 2018. Perubahan status koagulasi dinilai melalui kadar D-dimer plasma. Kadar D-dimer diukur sebelum dan 7 hari setelah kemoterapi. Analisis statistik menggunakan uji t berpasangan untuk menilai kemaknaan perubahan kadar D-dimer plasma sebelum dan setelah kemoterapi.Hasil. Sejumlah 89 pasien memenuhi kriteria inklusi, yang mana 74,2% adalah perempuan dan hampir separuh dari keseluruhan subjek terdiagnosis kanker payudara (44,9%). Mayoritas subjek (69,6%) terdiagnosis pada stadium III atau IV. Sejumlah 12,4% dari subjek mendapatkan kemoterapi berbasis cisplatin. Terdapat perbedaan yang bermakna antara kadar D-dimer sebelum dan setelah kemoterapi (p = 0,05). Studi ini juga menemukan perbedaan bermakna kadar D-dimer sebelum dan sesudah kemoterapi pada pasien kanker stadium III (t(35) = 2,48, p = 0,02) dan stadium IV (t(25) = 2,14, p = 0,04). Tidak terdapat perbedaan bermakna antara kadar D-dimer sebelum dan setelah kemoterapi pada pasien stadium I dan II. Analisis lanjutan berdasarkan kelompok kemoterapi menunjukkan bahwa terdapat perubahan kadar D-dimer yang bermakna pada kelompok yang mendapatkan kemoterapi cisplatin (t(10) = 2,31, p = 0,04), namun tidak pada kelompok yang mendapat kemoterapi non-cisplatin (t(77) = 1,50, p = 0,14).Simpulan. Terdapat perbedaan bermakna status koagulasi yang ditandai dengan kadar D-dimer 7 hari pasca mendapatkan kemoterapi, khususnya pada pasien kanker stadium III atau IV dan mendapatkan kemoterapi berbasis cisplatin. Kata Kunci: Cisplatin, kanker, kemoterapi, status koagulasiChange of Coagulation Status in Solid Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy in Indonesia: A Prospective Cohort StudyIntroduction. Cancer-associated hypercoagulability was an underlying factor of high mortality of cancer due to venous thromboembolism. Chemotherapy is proposed as one of the contributing factors of the hypercoagulable state. We aim to evaluate the change of coagulation status, which was marked by D-dimer level, in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.Methods. This is a prospective cohort study in Indonesian national cancer center which involves all adult histologically-confirmed-cancer patients who started chemotherapy between May and July 2018. The coagulation status is assessed by plasma of D-dimer level. We measured D-dimer before chemotherapy and one week after chemotherapy. Paired t-test was performed to assess the significant difference in D-dimer levels before and after chemotherapy.Results. A total of 89 patients fulfilled the eligibility criteria, of whom 74.2% were female and almost half of total subjects (44.9%) were breast cancer patients. Majority of subjects (69.6%) were stage III or stage IV cancer. There were 12.4% of subjects received cisplatin-based chemotherapy. There was a marginally significant difference in plasma level of D-dimers before and after chemotherapy (p = 0.05). We also found significant differences between D-dimer level before and after chemotherapy in stage III patients (t(35) = 2.48, p = 0.02) and stage IV patients (t(25) = 2.14, p = 0.04). There was no significant difference between D-dimer level before and after chemotherapy in stage I and stage II patients. Subgroup analyses based on chemotherapy agents showed that there was significant D-dimer change in cisplatin-based chemotherapy subjects (t(10) = 2.31, p = 0.04), but not in non-cisplatin-based chemotherapy subjects (t(77) = 1,50, p = 0.14).Conclusion. Compared to before chemotherapy, there is a significant difference of coagulation status marked by plasma D-dimer level one week after chemotherapy, particularly in patients with stage III or stage IV cancer and in patients receiving cisplatin-based chemotherapy.


2017 ◽  
Vol 117 (3) ◽  
pp. 479-487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah B. Bateni ◽  
Richard J. Bold ◽  
Frederick J. Meyers ◽  
Daniel J. Canter ◽  
Robert J. Canter

2007 ◽  
Vol 25 (33) ◽  
pp. 5267-5274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sung-Gyeong Kim ◽  
Eun-Cheol Park ◽  
Jae-Hyun Park ◽  
Myung-Il Hahm ◽  
Jin-Hwa Lim ◽  
...  

PurposeTo identify the initiation or discontinuation of complementary therapy (CT) and determine the impact of sociodemographic and clinical factors on CT use among cancer patients.Patients and MethodsEligible patients were age 20 or older; newly diagnosed with stomach, liver, or colorectal cancer; and started their initial treatment at the National Cancer Center, Korea, between April 1, 2001, and April 30, 2003. In total, 541 cancer patients were surveyed in face-to-face interviews at baseline, and telephone follow-up interviews were performed every 3 months for 3 years.ResultsA total of 281 patients commenced CT after diagnosis; 164 patients stopped using CT during the follow-up period. The overall cumulative probability of starting CT at 1, 2, and 3 years was 50%, 54%, and 55%, respectively. In a Cox multivariate analysis, stomach and liver cancer were associated with an increased probability of initiating CT compared with colorectal cancer. Patients who were classified as stage I, II, or III at diagnosis were associated with a decreased probability of discontinuing CT compared with stage IV.ConclusionMost cancer patients started to use CT during the initial treatment period. Thus, physicians should communicate with cancer patients about CT at this phase. In particular, more attention should be paid to women and individuals with higher household incomes because these groups are more likely to start CT.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (8) ◽  
pp. 2711-2720 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ross Mudgway ◽  
Carlos Chavez de Paz Villanueva ◽  
Ann C. Lin ◽  
Maheswari Senthil ◽  
Carlos A. Garberoglio ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 84 (10) ◽  
pp. 1565-1569
Author(s):  
Lobsang Marcia ◽  
Zane W. Ashman ◽  
Eric B. Pillado ◽  
Dennis Y. Kim ◽  
David S. Plurad

Formal communication of end-of-life preferences is crucial among patients with metastatic cancer. Our objective is to describe the prevalence of advance directives (AD) and do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders among stage IV cancer patients with acute care surgery consultations, and the associated outcomes. This is a single institution retrospective review over an eight-year period. Two hundred and three patients were identified; mean age was 55.3 ± 11.4 years and 48.8 per cent were male. Fifty (24.6%) patients underwent exploratory surgery. Nineteen (10.6%) patients had another type of surgery. Twenty-one (10.3%) patients had a DNR order, and none had an AD on-admission. Fifty-four (26.6%) patients had a DNR order placed and four (2%) patients completed an AD postadmission. DNR postadmission was associated with the highest mortality at 42.6 per cent compared with 14.3 per cent for DNR on-admission and 1.56 per cent for full-code patients ( P < 0.001). Compared with patients that remained full-code and those with DNR on-admission, DNR postadmission was associated with longer length of stay (19.6 days; P < 0.001) and ICU length of stay (7.72 days; P < 0.001). The prevalence of AD and DNR orders among stage IV cancer patients is low. The higher in-hospital mortality of patients with DNR postadmission reflects the use of DNR orders during clinical decline.


2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (8_suppl) ◽  
pp. 80-80
Author(s):  
Mohammad Omar Atiq ◽  
Rahul Ravilla ◽  
Ajay Kumar ◽  
Sajjad Haider ◽  
Ji-Ling Tang ◽  
...  

80 Background: Numerous studies established that early utilization of palliative care-hospice services are beneficial to cancer patients. To reduce the incidence of aggressive care in terminal cancer patients, we conducted a quality improvement study to identify pertinent risk factors and develop interventions. Methods: Through chart review, we retrospectively identified patients with stage IV cancer that were followed by oncology clinic and were admitted to the University Hospital between 8/1/2015-10/31/15. For those patients who died during the last hospitalization or were discharged to hospice care, we obtained demographic, cancer related and practice related variables listed in Table. We used Mann Whitney U test and multivariable regression to find effects of factors related to length of stay (LOS) and cost of stay (COS). Results: Length of stay was significantly prolonged in those receiving chemotherapy within the past month (6 vs 3 p=0.035). Multivariate analyses found that patients with goals of care documented in the clinic had lower COS by 36.7% and LOS by 46.7%. On average, an ICU stay resulted in COS 2.2 times higher. No significant difference was seen in LOS based on a documented palliative care clinic visit or presence of an advanced directive. Conclusions: We identified practice based factors that need improvement including earlier goals of care conversations and less chemotherapy at the end of life. Identifying end stage patients in earlier admissions, collaborating with palliative care, and adding goals of care documentation to clinic note templates, are all interventions we are studying to improve care for end stage cancer patients. [Table: see text]


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e20056-e20056
Author(s):  
Jennifer Christian ◽  
Joe Wagner ◽  
Gregory Mastrogiovanni ◽  
Andrew David Norden ◽  
Ian Kurashige

e20056 Background: This study characterizes biomarker testing over time in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) patients treated within a clinical setting. There have been tremendous advances in treatments for NSCLC that target specific biomarkers such as epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR), anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK), and the Programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway. As we consider using oncology EMR records for future studies, it is critical to understand the extent to which biomarker testing is conducted in routine care, the extent to which testing has increased, and the types of patients for which it is done. Methods: This is a retrospective observational analysis derived from the COTA Oncology EHR database from January 1, 2015 through December 31, 2017. The data sets generated for the study included all relevant, retrospective patient-level, de-identified data available for patients with lung cancer, including EGFR, ALK, and PD-L1 testing regardless of age, gender, and stage at diagnosis. We examined characteristics associated with each type of test received as well as by those who had received all 3 biomarker tests, 1-2 of the tests, or no biomarker testing. Analyses were conducted using SAS V. 9.1 and stratified by data source. Results: There were 1,891 patients in the COTA database. Among newly diagnosed NSCLC patients, EGFR testing has been consistently conducted in patients during the study period (76 – 86%), while ALK testing [44% in 2015Q1 to 74% in 2017Q4] and PD-L1 testing [12% in 2015Q1 to 77% in 2017Q4] have steadily increased each quarter. Overall, testing was more likely to be conducted in non-squamous cell lung cancer patients, Stage IV lung cancer, and those without a history of smoking. For EGFR, testing was more prevalent among women and young age groups ( < 64 years vs. 65 and older). Conclusions: Biomarker testing has rapidly increased for ALK and PD-L1, which correlates with the uptake of new targeted therapies. Further research could be conducted to understand clinical outcomes associated with this increase in testing as well as the impact on healthcare resource utilization.


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