Search

Introduction: Cancer patients and caregivers have myriad unmet needs which can have detrimental consequences on their psychosocial wellbeing. This systematic review aims to identify the unmet supportive care needs of immigrant and native Chinese cancer patients and caregivers. Methods: We systematically searched various electronic databases (e.g. Scopus, CINAHL, PsycInfo, etc.) from the earliest date available until January 2018. Additional studies were identified through reference lists and citation tracking. Eligibility criteria included: (a) qualitative, quantitative and/or mixed methods studies published in English; (b) immigrant and native Chinese cancer patients and/or caregivers (age ≥18 years); (c) unmet needs and/or their correlates. Studies were assessed for their risk of bias, and a narrative synthesis of findings was performed. Results: Forty‐seven papers from 45 studies met eligibility criteria. The most prevalent area of unmet needs was health system and information. Patients most commonly desired one member of the hospital to talk to about all aspects of their care. Caregivers preferred information about the patient's prognosis and likely outcome. Anxiety was most commonly associated with higher levels of health system and information needs. Conclusion: Chinese patients and caregivers experience a range of unmet health system and information needs, which differ depending on their stage along the cancer trajectory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Currently, there are no self‐management resources in Australia that support both Chinese immigrant patients affected by cancer and their caregivers. This paper reports on the development and acceptability assessment of a self‐management intervention (WeCope) in terms of its scope, social and cultural relevance and sensitivity. Methods: Using a community participatory approach in this qualitative study, patients, caregivers and community members took part in semi‐structured focus groups or interviews in Cantonese, Mandarin or English to develop and provide feedback on the acceptability of 'WeCope'. Content analysis was performed on the transcripts using inductive (codes) and deductive (themes and categories) methods. Results: Patients (n = 17), caregivers (n = 10) and community members (n = 2) participated. Four themes were developed, guided by the framework of cultural sensitivity in interventions: (1) content preference and satisfaction; (2) perceived usefulness and usability; (3) cultural relevance and acceptability; and (4) layout and presentation. Participants most commonly wanted more information about treatment‐related issues (n = 14) and available support services (n = 14). Conclusion: Chinese patients and caregivers expressed overall satisfaction with the WeCope resource and provided suggestions for improvement, including provision of more treatment‐related information and contact details for available support while reducing the overall resource length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The goal of our study was to evaluate the reliability, validity, responsiveness and acceptability of the Mandarin (simplified) Chinese version of the EORTC QLQ‐OH45. Methods: From October 2017 to February 2018, 393 cancer patients were enrolled from three different hospitals in China. A forward and backward translation was made to develop the Mandarin (simplified) Chinese version of EORTC QLQ‐OH15. The QLQ‐C30 and QLQ‐OH15 questionnaires (which we have assembled and named QLQ‐OH45 in this paper) were self‐administered. Results were statistically analysed using SPSS 21.0. The reliability and validity tests of the questionnaires were assessed by Cronbach's α coefficient, Pearson correlation test and Mann–Whitney U tests. Responsiveness to change was measured in an independent sample of patients with head and neck cancer undergoing surgery or radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Results: An acceptable internal consistency reliability for most multiple‐item scales was demonstrated, as Cronbach's α coefficients were greater than 0.7 for most multiple‐item scales, excepting for cognitive functioning (0.36) and oral health‐related QoL functioning (0.55). All domain's test–retest reliability coefficients (r) was higher than 0.8. Multi‐trait scaling analysis showed good convergent and discriminant validity. A difference in the quality of life (QoL) between older (≥65 years) and younger (<65 years) groups of patients was showed by the known‐group comparisons. Low correlations were found between the scales of the QLQ‐OH15 and QLQ‐C30 in all areas. Conclusion: The Mandarin (simplified) Chinese version of QLQ‐OH45 demonstrates satisfactory psychometric properties and can be used to measure the oral health‐related QoL (OHRQoL) for Chinese cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the effect of art therapy on cancer patients' quality of life and physical and psychological symptoms. Methods: The databases PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, Clinical Trial.gov, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang and the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM) were searched from their inception up to 20 August 2019. Trials examining the effects of art therapy on physical and psychological symptoms and quality of life versus a control group were included. The methodological quality of the included randomised controlled trials was assessed using the risk of bias tool of Cochrane Handbook. Meanwhile, the Newcastle‐Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS) was used to evaluate the methodological quality of the non‐randomised studies. Results: Twelve studies involving 587 cancer patients were included. The results revealed that art therapy significantly reduced anxiety symptoms (standard mean difference [SMD] = −0.46, 95% confidence interval [CI] [−0.90, 0.02], p =.04), depression symptoms (SMD = −0.47, 95% CI [−0.72, 0.21], p <.01), and fatigue (SMD = −0.38, 95% CI [−0.68, −0.09], p =.01) in cancer patients. Art therapy also significantly improved the quality of life of cancer patients (SMD = 0.43, 95% CI [0.18, 0.68], p <.01). Conclusions: Art therapy had a positive effect on quality of life and symptoms in cancer patients and can be used as a complementary treatment for cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Psychometrically rigorous and comprehensive needs assessment measures for Chinese general cancer caregivers are relatively scarce. We described the development and psychometric evaluation of the Chinese version of the Cancer Support Person's Unmet Needs Survey‐Short Form (SPUNS‐SFC). Methods: A forward–backward translation method was utilised to develop the SPUNS‐SFC. The construct validity, internal consistency, convergent validity and discriminant validity of the SPUNS‐SFC were evaluated. Results: A total of 1,026 Chinese cancer caregivers completed the SPUNS‐SFC. Items 10, 11, 13, 24 and 26 were removed as more than 80% of respondents reported having no unmet needs on these items. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a five‐factor structure, which accounted for 78.47% of the total variance, and consisted of the following domains: information, healthcare access and continuity, personal and emotional needs, worries about the future, and financial needs. Internal consistency of the measure was high, with Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranging from 0.87 to 0.95 for the five domains. The measure illustrated adequate evidence of convergent validity, demonstrated by significant correlations with multiple measures of psychological well‐being. Known‐groups validity was established, as 87.5% of the hypotheses were supported. Conclusion: This study indicates the SPUNS‐SFC is a reliable and valid measure of the unmet needs of Chinese cancer caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]