Age, Health, and Education Determine Supportive Care Needs of Men Younger Than 70 Years With Prostate Cancer

Abstract

Attention should be given to sexual and psychological needs in the early months after diagnosis or treatment of prostate cancer, particularly in younger men, those with less education, and those having surgery. Research into better ways of meeting these needs will enable us to meet them with as much rigor as we meet clinical treatment needs.

“I wish I’d told them”: A qualitative study examining the unmet psychosexual needs of prostate cancer patients during follow-up after treatment

“…This paper offers insight into patients' experiences of follow-up care, including the failure to address certain psychosexual needs, particularly those concerning sexual function. We thought it important to present the accounts of both younger and older men here, as to date most studies have emphasized younger men's 'greater' psychosexual needs [9,44] and have commonly assumed that "the older the patient, the less the bother" [45] . However, one Swedish study found that elderly people still 5 regarded sexual activity as a natural part of their lives [46] and some of the accounts of older men presented here suggest that the psychosexual consequences of treatment may be relative to initial function, irrespective of age.…”

A Pilot Study Examining the Unmet Needs of Cancer Survivors Living with Polypathology

“…The second survey was the Supportive Care Needs Survey 13,14 , which has frequently been used in its original and modified forms to assess various cancer populations [15][16][17] . The original version covers 5 domains: physical and daily living, psychological, health system and information, patient care and support, and sexuality.…”

Supportive care needs of men living with prostate cancer in England: a survey

“…These surveys suggest that up to 87% of men with prostate cancer have elements of unmet supportive care need (Steginga et al, 2001) with greatest unmet need relating to sexuality and psychological issues (Steginga et al, 2001;Lintz et al, 2003;Smith et al, 2007). Steginga et al (2001) and Smith et al (2007) determined that high need for patient care and support was associated with lower levels of education. Further, Steginga et al (2001) determined that men who had had radiotherapy to the prostate and not in remission were at risk of high unmet need.…”

“…Limited evidence, generated primarily by four surveys, exists on the supportive care needs of men living with prostate cancer. One survey explored the supportive care needs of 206 men subscribed to prostate cancer self-help groups in Queensland, Australia (Steginga et al, 2001), another investigated the needs of men (n ¼ 204) with localised prostate cancer in four US sites (Boberg et al, 2003), Smith et al (2007) conducted a survey in New South Wales, Australia of 978 men under 70 years and newly diagnosed with the disease, whereas Lintz et al (2003) conducted the only UK survey. The latter surveyed needs of men attending a non-surgical oncology clinic (n ¼ 210).…”