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Purpose: To describe the unmet informational, psychological, emotional, social, practical, and physical needs and preferences for posttreatment survivorship care of individuals living with multiple myeloma to inform the development of relevant, person-centered, survivorship services.Methods: An exploratory, descriptive study using 2 focus groups with 14 participants, 6 to 49 months postdiagnosis.Results: Thematic analysis revealed 7 key themes: information needs, experience with health-care professionals, coping with side effects, communicating with family and friends, dealing with emotions, support needs, and living with the chronicity of myeloma. Participants described key characteristics of survivorship care relevant to their needs and indicated they would like a more whole of person approach to follow-up when the main treatment phases had completed.Conclusion: Participants in this study described unmet needs across a breadth of domains that varied over time. The development of flexible, person-centered approaches to comprehensive survivorship care is needed to address the considerable quality-of-life issues experienced by people living with multiple myeloma. Nurse-led care may offer 1 viable model to deliver enhanced patient experience—providing the vital “link” that people described as missing from their survivorship care.

Prostate cancer is among the most common cancer diagnosed in men worldwide. Diagnosis and treatment result in a range of well-documented problems that impact on quality of life (Steginga et [...]

'Although I now work as a researcher in cancer care, by background I am a nurse, I trained in Cardiff in Wales, after first completing a degree in Welsh literature, [...]

Nurses play a substantial role in the prevention and management of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV).

Abstract Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of nursing intervention for breathlessness in patients with lung cancer. Design Patients diagnosed with lung cancer participated in a multicentre randomised controlled trial where [...]

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the most common cancer affecting both men and women in Australia. The illness and related treatments can cause distressing adverse effects, impact on emotional and psychological well-being, and adversely affect social, occupational, and relationship functioning. Current models of follow-up fail to address the complex needs arising after treatment completion. Strategies to better prepare and support survivors are urgently required.

Based on a theoretical framework, we developed an audiovisual resource to promote self-management of eight common chemotherapy side-effects. A patient needs analysis identified content domains, best evidence for preparing patients for threatening medical procedures and a systematic review of effective self-care strategies informed script content. Patients and health professionals were invited to complete a written evaluation of the video. A 25-min video was produced. Fifty health professionals and 37 patients completed the evaluation. All considered the video informative and easy to understand. The majority believed the video would reduce anxiety and help patients prepare for chemotherapy. Underpinned by a robust theoretical framework, we have developed an evidence-based resource that is perceived by both patients and health professionals as likely to enhance preparedness for chemotherapy.Based on a theoretical framework, we developed an audiovisual resource to promote self-management of eight common chemotherapy side-effects. A patient needs analysis identified content domains, best evidence for preparing patients for threatening medical procedures and a systematic review of effective self-care strategies informed script content. Patients and health professionals were invited to complete a written evaluation of the video. A 25-min video was produced. Fifty health professionals and 37 patients completed the evaluation. All considered the video informative and easy to understand. The majority believed the video would reduce anxiety and help patients prepare for chemotherapy. Underpinned by a robust theoretical framework, we have developed an evidence-based resource that is perceived by both patients and health professionals as likely to enhance preparedness for chemotherapy.

A collaborative, evaluative review of qualitative research in palliative care published between 1990 and 1999 has been conducted. Nearly 30000 articles in 48 journals from specialist palliative care, oncology, death studies, medicine, nursing, gerontology, health and the social sciences were examined. From these journals, 138 articles (0.5%) reporting qualitative research with a focus on palliative care in the context of death, dying or bereavement were identified. These articles were reviewed using a proforma designed by the group. This article describes the review process, and the following findings: the distribution of different forms of qualitative research in palliative care; the location of such papers; the focus of the research; and the research methodology and methods adopted.

It is vital that nurses wishing to recommend or introduce new strategies are able to provide supporting evidence that is acceptable to their colleagues. The methodology from which to derive such evidence remains to be clearly defined, as the research process is complex, demanding and, to a certain extent, uncharted. This paper examines the experience of nurses collaborating in a multi-centre randomised controlled trial which evaluated a nursing intervention for the management of breathlessness in patients with lung cancer. The study raised several important methodological issues: resistance among colleagues to innovative nursing practice; the difficulty of measuring well-being in patients whose physical condition is deteriorating; maintaining uniformity of practice within a diverse group of collaborating nurse researchers; and the tension between the nursing role and the necessity of an ethically demanding research design.Analysis of the process of conducting a randomised controlled trial produced valuable insights which indicated the kind of support required to undertake research and successfully implement a new intervention into clinical practice. The study also highlighted the problems associated with asking ill people to complete standard measurement tools, particularly when such instruments might not be sensitive to the reality of the patient(s) problem, in this case, the experience of breathlessness.

This paper offers an insight into the nature and impact of fatigue through the triadic perceptions of patients with advanced cancer, family members or friends, and health care professionals involved with their care.Their views were accessed through a case study undertaken at a cancer centre and funded by Macmillan Cancer Relief. The aim was to identify aspects of the experience that may be amenable to future nursing intervention.

Recounts the experience of a nurse researcher while working to improve the care of people with cancer at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Victoria. Job description at the cancer centre; Views on the significance of nurses to health care; Pain management of cancer patients; Efforts of nurses to make health care evidence-based.

Reports on the development of a nurse-led clinic for men with prostate and bladder cancers in Australia. Indication of the current structure of acute care provision; Benefits to patients who attend nurse-led clinics; Findings of a study conducted by the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre on assessment of disease and treatment-related problems among men attending radiotherapy and brachytherapy for prostate and bladder cancers.