At times of cancer, also family members may need support from healthcare professionals. For support to be relevant it needs to be tailored to a person's needs. Tailored support is recognized as support co-created through an intangible interaction between the supporter and the supported. Despite this, studies primarily focus on the supporter (healthcare professionals) or the supported (family members). As a result, the co-created dimension is lost. Therefore, the purpose was to describe and compare family members´ supportive care needs with support from cancer nurses across the care process in outpatient colorectal cancer care.

This study is designed as a qualitative single case study with two embedded units: family members and Contact Nurses. Data consisted of transcribed semi-structured interviews from 23 family members and 21 Contact Nurses. Both within and across units, analyses were undertaken using conventional qualitative content analysis. Reporting adheres to the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research checklist.

Analysis generated a main category: Aiming for survival illustrating the common goal of the two units and its implications for support for family members in routine colorectal cancer care. Three subcategories describe family members´ supportive care needs in relation to Contact Nurses´ support for family members across the colorectal cancer care process: (1) The diagnostic phase: Narrowed sight in treatment preparation; (2) The treatment phase: Foregrounding family caregiving while backgrounding family support; and (3) The surveillance phase: An enduring cancer experience despite being considered a co-survivor.

Support tailored to family members' supportive care needs should derive from the family members' cancer experiences and include strategies for bringing their needs to light. This could possibly be achieved by strengthening the collaboration between contact nurses and clinical social workers. In addition, family members require preparation for and support during their entire cancer trajectory to enable a healthy family recovery post-treatment. In addition, they need guidance on where and whom to turn to at each stage of the care process.

To establish capabilities required by nurses to deliver quality cancer survivorship care in Australia.

A two-round online modified Delphi involving Australian cancer nurses. Initial domains and capability statements were based on the Quality of Cancer Survivorship Care Framework and supplemented by national and international nursing frameworks. In Round 1 (R1), experts categorised the applicability of 53 capabilities for cancer nurses, across eight domains, in relation to Australian National Professional Development Framework for Cancer Nursing (EdCaN) groups: 'All', 'Many', 'Some', and 'Few' nurses, or not relevant. In Round 2 (R2), experts rated agreement with capabilities allocated to the nurse groups. A priori consensus was set at ≥ 80%.

Surveys were distributed to 51 experts, with a response rate of 92% (47/51) for R1 and 75% (38/51) for R2. Following R1, ten capabilities were added, resulting in 63 capabilities for R2 to establish consensus allocation to EdCaN groupings. Fifty-seven capabilities reached consensus; four capabilities were moved from 'many' to 'some' nurses; one capability was moved from 'some' to 'few' nurses; and one capability was retained in 'all' nurses following Delphi feedback and research team discussion.

Sixty-three capabilities across eight cancer survivorship care domains were identified and allocated to different nursing groupings. This study provides important foundational work by identifying the capabilities of cancer nurses to deliver quality cancer survivorship care in Australia.

The identification of clearly defined capabilities may improve the quality of cancer survivorship care through the enrichment and standardisation of educational curricula and continuing professional education, and through improved workforce planning.

We evaluated the reliability and validity of the Korean translation of the quality of oncology nursing care scale (K-QONCS) and verified its suitability as a tool to assess the quality of cancer patient care in Korea. To validate the content validity of the K-QONCS, five oncology nurse experts assessed the suitability of the adapted tools. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to assess construct, convergent, discriminant, and criterion validity. A survey of 235 adults aged > 18 years who had been diagnosed with cancer and were receiving treatment was conducted to validate the K-QONCS. The QONCS was translated and appropriately modified to reflect expert opinion, and its content validity was confirmed to be high through indicators such as item-level content validity index, scale-level content validity index using an averaging calculation (S-CVI/Ave), and S-CVI/universal agreement. Eight factors were derived by EFA; each factor reflected different aspects of quality of care. The scale exhibited convergent and discriminant validity, demonstrated by multitrait-multimethod matrix analysis and correlation analysis with the Nursing Satisfaction Scale. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.92, indicating high overall internal consistency. We demonstrated the reliability and feasibility of the K-QONCS. The K-QONCS may help oncology nurses to improve patient care experiences and outcomes as well as advance oncology nursing practices in South Korea.

The development and implementation of evidence-based cancer nutrition models of care into clinical practice is challenging and pragmatic guidance is lacking. This scoping review aimed to identify the core elements and principles of nutrition models of care for people with cancer.

MEDLINE Complete, CINAHL and Embase were systematically searched between 1 January 2003-8 November 2023. Studies were eligible for inclusion and data extraction if they reported on the implementation or evaluation of a nutrition model of care for adults with any cancer diagnosis. The protocol was prospectively registered on Open Science Framework (https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/RQVHJ) on 7 November 2023.

The search identified 4599 papers, 28 studies met inclusion criteria. Studies were primarily conducted in Australia (71.4 %), within a hospital (96.4 %), metropolitan setting (89.3 %) and with various cancer diagnoses. Most studies described a nutrition screening process and 50 % used a valid and reliable assessment tool. Studies described provision of direct care by the dietitian (n = 26), primarily conducted in the outpatient setting (n = 26) and lesser in the inpatient setting (n = 12), and frequently face-to-face (n = 25) [phone (n = 14), telehealth (n = 3)]. Ten core elements were identified that underpinned the models of care including: timely care driven by a care pathway, protocol or clinic (100.0 %); nutrition expertise and leadership (100.0 %); flexible and integrated (100.0 %); with multi-directional communication (96.4 %); accessible (92.9 %); stratified by risk (89.3 %); multidisciplinary engagement (85.7 %); across different care time-points and settings (85.7 %); supported by training/education (50.0 %) and data integration (25.0 %).

Nutrition expert-led cancer nutrition models of care literature was primarily limited to metropolitan, hospital settings and many lacked valid nutrition assessment tools. Ten core elements were identified that underpinned nutrition care, with the most utilised being: timely care driven by a care pathway, protocol or clinic; nutrition expert-led; flexible and integrated; with multi-directional communication; accessible; and stratified by risk. There is great potential for an evidence-based model of nutrition care to improve the implementation and embedding of high-quality nutrition elements into the cancer pathway.

Brain tumours are associated with significant disease burden with needs fluctuating throughout the disease trajectory. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to assess the effect of non-pharmacological supportive care interventions on patients with a primary brain tumour by means of patient-reported outcome measures.

The following electronic databases were systematically searched: Academic Search Complete, APA PsycInfo, APA PsycArticles, CINAHL Plus, Cochrane, PubMed, and Web of Science. Additional records were located from Google Scholar, reference tracking, and hand searching. Title, abstract, and full-text screenings were completed by two independent reviewers. Data were extracted using a standardised extraction table. Quality appraisal was conducted using the Mixed Method Appraisal Tool. Results were described via narrative synthesis or meta-analyses of standardised scores for randomised controlled trials.

From 1261 records, nine studies were included. Various interventions were utilised including five exercise-based interventions (aerobics, Pilates, yoga, in-patient rehabilitation and out-patient rehabilitation), two cognitive rehabilitation programs, and two psychosocial interventions. Eight of the nine interventions benefitted patients with statistically significant improvement to at least one aspect of their wellbeing. Meta-analyses of randomised controlled trials for all interventions found standardised mean improvements to the outcomes of quality of life (0.34, p-value = 0.037), psychological wellbeing (0.35, p-value = 0.001), cognitive symptoms (0.41, p-value = 0.016), and fatigue (0.31, p-value <0.001).

Non-pharmacological supportive care interventions showed positive effects in reducing symptom burden among patients with primary brain tumours. Further research with larger sample sizes is needed to confirm these findings.

The period directly after primary treatment for breast or prostate cancer is a time when patients feel unprepared about how to manage life and address unexpected health challenges. Supportive care should focus on identifying symptoms and concerns and involving survivors in their self-care. Interventions using a blended model encompassing remote and in-person components may inform how supportive care can be organised. This protocol describes two pilot randomised controlled trials with the aim to investigate the acceptability, feasibility and potential effects of a 6 month digital and nurse-led support intervention in primary care for patients with breast or prostate cancer during the first year after primary treatment.

Two cluster randomised pilot trials including patients with breast or prostate cancer during the first year after ending primary treatment will run from 2023 in primary care centres in Region Stockholm. The trials will have an estimated sample size of 20 patients in each arm. The intervention groups receive a digital and nurse-led support intervention in combination with standard care, and the control groups receive standard care alone. To assess acceptability and feasibility, the participants in the intervention groups and the study nurses will be interviewed. Furthermore, digitally logged data and field notes by study-specific nurses will be analysed. Data collection for the potential effects of the intervention is conducted through self-reported standardised and validated questionnaires at baseline, and at 3, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months. Data entry and analyses will be blinded to the researchers. Qualitative data will be analysed with content analysis, quantitative data will be evaluated by comparing changes within and between groups.

This project was reviewed and approved by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority. Study results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at scientific and professional meetings.

ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT06471452 and NCT05100121.

To describe trajectories of change in unmet supportive care needs over a two-year period among people diagnosed with cancer and assess whether these trajectories vary as a function of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics.

This analysis used data from a longitudinal study of people in Queensland, Australia who travelled largely from regional and remote areas to metropolitan centres to receive cancer care (N = 784). Supportive care needs were measured at baseline, then at 3-, 12-, and 24-month post-baseline across five domains ('psychological', 'physical and daily living', 'health systems and information', 'patient care and support', 'sexuality') using the Supportive Care Needs Survey-Short Form. Latent Curve Growth Analysis was performed to examine trajectories of change in unmet needs and assess whether these trajectories were influenced by participant characteristics.

Significant linear slopes indicated a modest decrease in unmet supportive care needs for all domains, except sexuality. For most domains, significant variance in intercepts but not slopes indicated individual differences in needs at baseline but not in trajectories over time. At baseline, the proportion of unmet needs was highest for the 'physical and daily living' (M = 44.2%, SD = 39.1%) and 'psychological' domains (M = 37.8%, SD = 36.3%). Unmet needs at baseline were consistently higher among participants who were younger, had a higher education level, and who reported poorer QoL.

The proportion of unmet supportive care needs reported by people living with cancer may decrease over time, largely irrespective of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Despite this, unmet needs remain prevalent, particularly for physical and psychological support.

To describe the variations of family members' conceptions of their supportive care needs (SCN) across the colorectal cancer (CRC) trajectory.

A descriptive qualitative study with a phenomenographic approach.

Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted from May 2022 to October 2022 with 23 family members of persons diagnosed with colorectal cancer. The interviews were analysed using phenomenographic analysis following the Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist.

The phenomenographic analysis resulted in five categories. Not of importance describes family members' needs as unimportant due to the good prognosis and the organization of care and in relation to the needs of others. Only satisfiable by professionals describes information possessed by the healthcare professionals as key, as well as the need for professional counselling for the family members to process their emotions. Managed by themselves describes family members preferring to manage their SCN themselves by turning to the appropriate social support and/or by using coping skills. Understood retrospectively describes SCN as only understandable when things have calmed down and as requiring one's own experience to understand. Left unmet describes SCN as unnoticed by the healthcare professionals or not brought to light by the family members, or family members not knowing where to turn for support.

Supportive care should involve individualized information, proactive and repeated assessments of needs across the trajectory, as well as encouragement of family members to reflect on their needs and to accept support when needed.

There is a gap in the literature regarding family members' SCN across the CRC trajectory which this study addresses. Findings show five categories of family members' conceptions of their SCN. Those findings could serve as a basis for the development of clinical colorectal supportive care across the cancer trajectory.

Findings show that to offer family members of persons diagnosed with colorectal cancer support only at the time of diagnosis is insufficient. Instead, the healthcare team is recommended to proactively and repeatedly try to identify those in need and the characteristics of their needs. In addition, it is important to offer individualized information and strive to encourage family members to reflect on their situation and to not suppress their own needs if emerging.

Reporting adheres to the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist.

No patient or public contribution.

This study aimed to assess the feasibility and acceptability of a couple-based self-efficacy (SE) intervention, and to examine the effects of the intervention on health outcomes for CRC couples.

An assessor-blinded, two-armed, randomized controlled design was used. The study randomly assigned 144 patients hospitalized for colorectal cancer to receive either the SE intervention or the usual care. SE was the primary outcome. The secondary outcomes included quality of life and mental health (positive emotions and negative emotions). Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to examine the data.

The recruitment and retention rates were 80% and 87.5%, respectively. First, we found that patients scored significantly higher on anxiety (p = 0.001), depression (p = 0.001) and benefit findings (p = 0.009) than did spousal caregivers, whereas spousal caregivers scored significantly higher than patients on the quality of life (p < 0.001 for both physical scores and mental scores) in the SE group. Second, immediately after the intervention, the SE group showed statistically significant improvements were found in SE (p < 0.001 for both couples), quality of life (mental scores) (p = 0.002 for spousal caregivers), negative emotion (anxiety, p < 0.05 for both couples; depression, p = 0.03 for patients), and positive emotion (benefit findings) (p < 0.001 for both couple) when compared to the control group.

A couple-based SE intervention significantly improved SE, quality of life (mental scores), and psychological well-being, suggesting a short-term intervention effect.

Kidney transplantation (KT), although the best treatment option for eligible patients, entails maintaining and adhering to a life-long treatment regimen of medications, lifestyle changes, self-care, and appointments. Many patients experience uncertain outcome trajectories increasing their vulnerability and symptom burden and generating complex care needs. Even when transplants are successful, for some patients the adjustment to life post-transplant can be challenging and psychological difficulties, economic challenges and social isolation have been reported. About 50% of patients lose their transplant within 10 years and must return to dialysis or pursue another transplant or conservative care. This paper documents the complicated journey patients undertake before and after KT and outlines some initiatives aimed at improving patient-centered care in transplantation. A more cohesive approach to care that borrows its philosophical approach from the established field of supportive oncology may improve patient experiences and outcomes. We propose the "supportive care in transplantation" care model to operationalize a patient-centered approach in transplantation. This model can build on other ongoing initiatives of other scholars and researchers and can help advance patient-centered care through the entire care continuum of kidney transplant recipients and candidates. Multi-dimensionality, multi-disciplinarity and evidence-based approaches are proposed as other key tenets of this care model. We conclude by proposing the potential advantages of this approach to patients and healthcare systems.

Gastrointestinal cancers, including gastric and colorectal cancers, are major contributors to cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide, placing significant burdens on patients and their informal caregivers. This study aims to evaluate the level of supportive needs among informal caregivers of patients with gastrointestinal cancer and to identify key factors influencing these needs.

We conducted a descriptive survey involving 335 informal caregivers of patients with gastrointestinal cancer at a large hospital in Shanghai, China, from September 2023 to April 2024. Multivariate linear regression analysis was employed to examine potential factors affecting supportive needs, including demographic information, caregiver burden, and self-efficacy.

The average supportive needs score among the 335 caregivers was 113.59 ± 52.97. This score was positively correlated with caregiver burden (r = 0.363, P < 0.001), self-efficacy (r = 0.224, P < 0.001), and patients' Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) score (r = 0.119, P < 0.05). Multivariate regression analysis revealed that the care experience, duration of caregiving, relationship (sibling), self-efficacy, caregiver burden, KPS score of patients, treatment duration of patients, and cancer type of patients were significant factors influencing the supportive care needs of caregivers for elderly gastrointestinal cancer patients (P < 0.05).

Informal caregivers of elderly patients with gastrointestinal cancer often have increased levels of supportive needs. Clinical practice should include comprehensive assessments of these needs and the development of targeted interventions to improve caregiving skills and reduce caregiver burden, thereby enhancing the quality of life for both caregivers and patients.

Despite the increasing research on cancer patient caregivers, there is still a lack of detailed understanding about the experiences of spouses caring for elderly colorectal cancer patients. This study aimed to fill this gap by examining the caregiving experiences of spouses during palliative chemotherapy for elderly Chinese colorectal cancer patients.

Using a qualitative descriptive design, we recruited spousal caregivers of elderly colorectal cancer patients undergoing palliative chemotherapy. Semistructured interviews were conducted, and thematic analysis was employed to analyse the data.

Sixteen caregivers aged 60 to 82 years participated in the interviews. The analysis revealed three main themes: ambivalence, multiple role adaptation to conflicts, and the coexistence of hope and pressure. These themes shed light on the behaviors of older caregivers and the challenges they face, including physical and psychosocial issues associated with aging.

This study highlights the significant stress and challenges experienced by older caregivers, characterized by intertwined emotions such as anxiety about their spouses' health deterioration, exhaustion from long-term care responsibilities, and anticipation of treatment outcomes.

Supportive care (SC) refers to the prevention and management of complications of cancer and its treatment. While it has long been recognized as an important cancer care delivery component, a high proportion of patients face unaddressed SC needs, calling for innovative approaches to deliver SC.

The objective of this master protocol is to evaluate the implementation of different integrated proactive SC pathways across the cancer care continuum in our institution (Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France). Pathways studied in this master protocol may occur shortly after diagnosis to prevent treatment-related burden; during treatment to monitor the onset of toxicities and provide timely symptom management; and after treatment to improve rehabilitation, self-management skills, and social reintegration.

This study is guided by the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance framework. The primary objective is to evaluate the impact of SC pathways on patients' distress and unmet needs after 12 weeks, measured by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network's Distress Thermometer and Problem List. Secondary objectives will focus on the pathways (macrolevel) and each SC intervention (microlevel), evaluating their reach (administrative data review of the absolute number and proportion of clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of patients included in the pathways); short-term and long-term efficacy through their impact on quality of life (EQ-5D-5L and the 30-item European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core Questionnaire) and symptom burden (MD Anderson Symptom Inventory, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Insomnia Severity Index, and 22-item European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Sexual Health Questionnaire); adoption by patients and providers (administrative data review of SC referrals and attendance or use of SC strategies); barriers to and leverage for implementation (surveys and focus groups with patients, providers, and the hospital organization); and maintenance (cost-consequence analysis). Pilot evaluations with a minimum of 70 patients per pathway will be performed to generate mean Distress Thermometer scores and SDs informing the calculation of formal sample size needed for efficacy evaluation (cohorts will be enriched accordingly).

The study was approved by the ethics committee, and as of February 2024, a total of 12 patients were enrolled.

This study will contribute toward innovative models of SC delivery and will inform the implementation of integrated SC pathways of care.

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT06479057; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06479057.

PRR1-10.2196/52841.

Despite significant advances in the management of lung cancer, patients continue to experience a high burden of unmet need impacting quality of life and outcomes of care. Achieving value-based health care, where investment is targeted to services that deliver optimal experience and outcomes of care relative to the cost of delivering that care, requires attention to what people value most in meeting their needs. To date there has been little attention to what matters most to patients with lung cancer (i.e., what they value) as a component of achieving value-based cancer care. This qualitative study was undertaken to investigate components of care valued by people with lung cancer in Australia.

This qualitative study used semistructured interviews with 23 people with lung cancer. Participants were recruited using a purposive sampling strategy from two metropolitan tertiary public health services. Data collected included demographic characteristics and patient perspectives regarding their priority concerns and components of care identified as most valuable in meeting their needs. Demographic characteristics of participants were analysed descriptively, and qualitative data were analysed thematically using Interpretive Description.

Data analysis generated three key themes: valued components of care; benefits of receiving valued care components and consequences of missed opportunities for care. The components of care valued by patients reflect the core dimensions of cancer supportive care, with particular emphasis on ongoing opportunities for consultation (screening for unmet needs) and provision of person-centred information. The facilitation of trust between patients and their treating team, as a consequence of having these valued components evident in their care, was identified as a key characteristic of value-based care.

This study has identified valued components of care described by people with lung cancer. Importantly, the care components identified have been proven to improve access to and coordination of care, and demonstrate the importance of integrating supportive care into care provision to achieve value-based cancer care.

This study was informed by perspectives of lung cancer patients who participated in semistructured interviews. We acknowledge that this contribution does not meet the criteria for patient and public involvement in research as defined by Health Expectations, but this study forms part of a larger program of cancer supportive care work being undertaken by this team, where comprehensive consumer engagement and co-design approaches are embedded in our work.

To explore factors that influence presentation to an emergency department during ambulatory systemic anti-cancer therapy.

This study was an exploratory qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. A purposive sample of adult patients with any cancer who had commenced systemic anti-cancer therapy in the ambulatory setting up to six months prior participated in semi-structured interviews between November 2016-December 2017. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, and data analysed thematically using a template analysis approach.

Twenty patients and four caregivers took part. Five themes were generated from the interview data: 1) the unknown and unpredictable; 2) a change of lifestyle; 3) social determinants and access; 4) trust in care providers; and 5) the unavailability of care.

As the number of systemic anti-cancer agents and patients eligible for them continues to grow, identifying, implementing and evaluating initiatives to mitigate emergency department presentations present an important area for health services research. Addressing timely access to trusted care and enhancing patient capacity for self-management present important areas for nurse-led system innovation. Findings from this study offer important insights into where and how nurses can mitigate emergency department presentations for individuals receiving systemic anti-cancer therapy by enabling accessible, coordinated and person-centred cancer care.

Demoralization is common in older adult homebound breast cancer patients, seriously affecting their quality of life. This study aimed to investigate the demoralization of older adult homebound breast cancer patients and to analyse the mediating effects of social support between self-disclosure and demoralization.

The study enrolled 368 older adult homebound breast cancer patients reviewed in outpatient clinics of three hospitals from January 2022 to August 2023. A questionnaire survey was conducted using the general information questionnaire, the distress disclosure index (DDI), the social support revalued scale (SSRS), and the demoralization scale (DS). Path analysis was conducted to test the hypothesised serial mediation model.

The total scores of self-disclosure, social support, and demoralization were 37 (25-42), 34 (19-48.75), and 46.5 (35-68), respectively. The results indicated a positive correlation between self-disclosure and social support (p < 0.01). In contrast, a statistically significant negative correlation was observed between self-disclosure, social support, and various demoralization dimensions (p < 0.01). Social support played a partial mediation effects between self-disclosure and demoralization, indirect effect =0.6362, SE = -0.591, 95% CI (-0.785 ~ -0.415); Self-disclosure direct effect demoralization, direct effect =0.3638, SE = -0.337, 95% CI (-0.525 ~ -0.144); total effect, SE = -0.929, 95% CI (-0.945 ~ -0.904).

Social support a partial mediated between self-disclosure and demoralization in Chinese older adult homebound breast cancer patients. Clinical staff should focus on developing a social support system for Chinese older adult homebound breast cancer patients, encouraging patients to reveal their minds, and providing psychological counselling to enhance self-confidence and rebirth from adversity.

To understand supportive care needs among people with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC).

An integrative systematic review was reported using the Preformed Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Seven electronic databases were searched for relevant studies, including all quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies, irrespective of research design. The review process was managed by Covidence systematic review software. Two reviewer authors independently performed data extraction using eligibility criteria. Quality appraisal was conducted, and a narrative synthesis was performed.

A total of 1129 articles were screened, of which 21 studies met the inclusion criteria. The findings revealed that the frequency of supportive care needs reported by NMIBC participants included psychological/emotional (16/21:76%), physical (16/21:76%), practical (8/21:38%), interpersonal/intimacy (7/21:33%), family-related (7/21:33%), health system/information (5/21:23%), social (4/21:19%), patient-clinician communication (3/21:14%), spiritual (1/21:5%) and daily needs (1/21:5%).

People affected by NMIBC experience anxiety, depression, uncertainty, and fear of recurrence. The physical symptoms reported included urinary issues, pain, sleeping disorders and fatigue. These supportive care needs persist throughout the participants' treatment trajectory and can impact their quality of life.

Identifying supportive care needs within the NMIBC population will help inform future interventions to provide patient-centred care to promote optimal well-being and self-efficacy for people diagnosed with NMIBC.

Little is known regarding how non-specialist nurses communicate with patients living with cancer when the patients are receiving care outside of their cancer units/teams. This scoping review aims to identify, examine and report on the currently available evidence about communication by non-specialist nurses when caring for adults living with cancer outside of their cancer care unit/teams.

A scoping review following the JBI methodology for scoping reviews will be conducted. We will search for empirical studies that meet the inclusion criteria in six databases (MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, Scopus and PsycINFO). Handsearching in references of included articles will be performed to find additional articles. The population of interest will be non-specialist nurses. Three concepts will be explored, namely (1) all adult patients living with cancer, (2) a focus on three stages of the cancer continuum of care (cancer diagnosis, treatment and survivorship) and (3) a focus on communication between non-specialist nurses and patients living with cancer. We will include studies describing all healthcare settings outside patients' specialised cancer units or oncology teams. After article selection, two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts and perform a full-text article review, risk of bias assessments and data extraction. A third reviewer will resolve all disagreements. A narrative summary will provide an overview of how the results relate to the research aims and questions. The included articles will be limited to English and published between 2012 and 2023.

No ethical approval is required since we will use publicly available empirical research sources. This review will provide current research on communication by non-specialist nurses with patients with a cancer diagnosis outside of an oncology setting, evidence that will support effective communication. As such, we aim to disseminate the findings in academic conferences and peer-reviewed journals.

Supportive cancer care is vital to reducing the current disparities in cancer outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), including poor survival and low quality of life, and ultimately achieving equity in cancer care. This is the first review aimed to evaluate the extent of unmet supportive care needs and identify their contributing factors among patients with cancer in SSA.

Six electronic databases (CINAHL, Embase, Medline [Ovid], PsycINFO, PubMed, and Cochrane Library of Databases] were systematically searched. Studies that addressed one or more domains of unmet supportive cancer care needs were included. Findings were analyzed using narrative analysis and meta-analysis, as appropriate.

Eleven articles out of 2732 were retained in the review. The pooled prevalence of perceived unmet need for cancer care in SSA was 63% (95% CI: 45, 81) for physical, 59% (95% CI: 45, 72) for health information and system, 58% (95% CI: 42, 74) for psychological, 44% (95% CI: 29, 59) for patient care and support, and 43% (95% CI: 23, 63) for sexual. Older age, female sex, rural residence, advanced cancer stage, and low access to health information were related to high rates of multiple unmet needs within supportive care domains.

In SSA, optimal cancer care provision was low, up to two-thirds of patients reported unmet needs for one or more domains. Strengthening efforts to develop comprehensive and integrated systems for supportive care services are keys to improving the clinical outcome, survival, and quality of life of cancer patients in SSA.

Increasing cases of cancer have been a primary concern in recent decades. Developing new chemotherapeutics is challenging and has been faced with limitations, such as multidrug resistance, poor specificity, selectivity, and toxicity. The aforementioned factors contribute to treatment failure. Hybrid compounds have features that can overcome the limitations mentioned above. Chlorambucil, an anticancer drug that is used to treat prostate and breast cancer, suffers from poor aqueous solubility and specificity, a short half-life, and severe side effects, including anaemia and bone marrow suppression. It compromises the immune system, resulting in treatment failure. Hence, its combination with other pharmacophores has been reported to result in effective anticancer agents with fewer side effects and high therapeutic outcomes. Furthermore, this review gives an update (2010 to date) on the developments of chlorambucil hybrid compounds with anticancer activity, and the structure-activity relationship (SAR), and also highlights future strategies for developing novel anticancer agents.

The emotional consequences of a cancer diagnosis are well documented and range from emotional distress, defined as suffering associated with feelings such as shock, fear, and uncertainty, through to psychological distress that may manifest as depression, anxiety, feelings of hopelessness, or heightened risk of suicide. This study set out to explore the assumption that the provision of emotional care should be the platform upon which all other aspects of cancer care are delivered and, that without attention to emotional care, no other aspects of cancer care can be fully realized. Utilizing qualitative focus groups and in-depth interviews with 47 patients, carers, and health professionals, emotional care was shown to be (1) fundamental to the provision of comprehensive cancer care, (2) essential to easing the burden of a cancer diagnosis and demands of treatment, (3) everyone's business, and (4) a component of cancer care at any time and every time. Future studies are needed to test interventions to enhance provision of intentional, purposeful, and individualized emotional care to help patents achieve the best health outcomes possible.

The liver is a key target organ for colorectal and gastric cancer metastasis. One of the challenges in the treatment of colorectal and gastric cancers is the management of liver metastasis. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy, adverse effects, and coping strategies of oncolytic virus injection in patients with liver metastases of gastrointestinal malignancies.

We prospectively analyzed patients treated at Ruijin Hospital affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from June 2021 to October 2022. 47 patients with gastrointestinal cancer liver metastasis were included in the study. The data, including clinical manifestations, imaging, tumor markers, postoperative adverse reactions, psychological intervention, dietary guidance, and adverse reaction management were evaluated.

Oncolytic virus injection was successful in all patients, and no drug injection-related deaths occurred. The adverse effects, such as fever, pain, bone marrow suppression, nausea, and vomiting, were mild and resolved subsequently. Based on the comprehensive intervention of nursing procedures, the postoperative adverse reactions of patients were effectively alleviated and treated. None of the 47 patients had any puncture point infections, and the pain caused by the invasive operation was relieved quickly. After 2 courses of oncolytic virus injection, postoperative liver MRI showed 5 partial remissions, 30 stable diseases, and 12 progressive diseases in target organs.

Interventions based on nursing procedures can ensure the smooth treatment of recombinant human adenovirus type 5 in patients with liver metastases of gastrointestinal malignant tumors. This is of great importance for clinical treatment and significantly reduces patient complications and improves the patient's quality of life.