Unmet Supportive Care Needs of Men With Locally Advanced and Metastatic Prostate Cancer on Hormonal Treatment

Abstract

Despite national cancer reforms, unmet supportive care needs persist. The findings from this study may be central in the re-design of future services to optimize men's quality of life and satisfaction with care. Clinicians are encouraged to use these finding to help them optimize care delivery and individual quality of life.

A pilot randomised controlled trial of a multimodal supportive care (ThriverCare) intervention for managing unmet supportive care needs in men with metastatic prostate cancer on hormonal treatment and their partner/caregivers

“…Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for metastatic prostate cancer remains the mainstay of treatment and has been proven to be effective in controlling disease (Sternberg et al, 2013). The majority of men face a range of physical and psychological problems that can have a profound decrement on quality of life and exacerbate the need for supportive care (Cockle-Hearne et al, 2013;King et al, 2015;Paterson et al, 2017;Watson et al, 2016). The treatment specific side effects include hot flushes, osteoporosis, fatigue, sexual dysfunction, changes in muscle mass, adiposity, and psychological effects such as, mood disturbance, cognitive impairment, difficulties with self-image and masculinities (Fitzpatrick et al, 2014).…”

“…Men affected by metastatic prostate cancer are likely to have a long illness pathway, as well as the individual burden to patients and their partner/caregivers with the associated side-effects, and this represents a burden on healthcare resources internationally (Carter et al, 2011;Chambers et al, 2018;Paterson et al, 2015a;Paterson et al, 2017).…”

Unmet needs in the international neuroendocrine tumor (NET) community: Assessment of major gaps from the perspective of patients, patient advocates and NET health care professionals

“…In contrast, in our study only 30% of NET patients reported that their informational needs were mostly or fully met at diagnosis. Other studies have also reported that for patients with more prevalent cancers, satisfaction and accessibility relating to hospitals and both diagnostic and therapeutic tools is superior and travel time shorter than for those with rarer cancers …”

“…88%) . A U.K. study of men with prostate cancer reported only 3.2% felt they had a strong need for more information on their care, diagnosis or treatment, while 48.4% felt this need was met fully . Similarly, a Japanese study of breast cancer survivors demonstrated that 78.8% were satisfied with information they received on the disease and therapy at diagnosis .…”

“…Other studies have also reported that for patients with more prevalent cancers, satisfaction and accessibility relating to hospitals and both diagnostic and therapeutic tools is superior and travel time shorter than for those with rarer cancers. 27,29 Our survey has several limitations, which are partly inherent to its design, including provision of the questionnaires in English only. As participants could skip questions, some important answers may have been missed.…”