Caring for a patient with terminal cancer poses difficulties for family caregivers. Although families of patients with cancer have been classified by type, little is known about the relation between family functioning...Caring for a patient with terminal cancer poses difficulties for family caregivers. Although families of patients with cancer have been classified by type, little is known about the relation between family functioning and quality of life (QOL) in family caregivers. This study aimed to develop a typology of family functioning in family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer and then examine the relation between the family functioning and QOL of family caregivers. From December 2013 to August 2014, fifty-one family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer were recruited at three hospitals in Tokyo, Japan. Perceptions of family functioning were assessed with the Family Relationship Index, and its three subscores were classified into three groups by cluster analysis. Caregivers’ QOL was measured with the Caregiver Quality of Life Index-Cancer. The average total FRI score among 51 caregivers was 8.5 (SD = 2.8). Family functioning was categorized into three clusters: supportive (n = 12), communicative (n = 30), or conflictive (n = 8). Their QOL was categorized into two groups: the communicative group, with relatively high confliction, showed high QOL comparable to the supportive group. Family functioning in the families of patients with terminal cancer hospitalized in general wards was not good. For improving the QOL of family caregivers, it may be important for the family members to express their feelings and distress if they have conflicts.展开更多
Satisfaction with care is an important indicator for family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer and is linked to the quality of life. Despite this, few studies have examined the aspects of satisfaction with ca...Satisfaction with care is an important indicator for family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer and is linked to the quality of life. Despite this, few studies have examined the aspects of satisfaction with care of family caregivers of inpatients with cancer in general wards. This qualitative study aimed to elucidate the elements of satisfaction with the care that inpatients with terminal cancer in general wards and their family caregivers receive from medical staff, as perceived by the family caregivers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 family caregivers of inpatients with terminal cancer. Participants were asked about the care received until then from medical staff, the features of satisfactory care, and the aspects of care they felt were unsatisfactory or could become satisfactory with improvement. The data were analyzed with the content analysis method and the six categories were extracted. For family caregivers of inpatients with terminal cancer in general wards, along with the care identified as important in palliative care, the methods of alleviating symptoms and explaining the patient’s condition were also important. The results highlight the importance of determining a patient-oriented approach and explanations together with each patient and family caregiver, based on an understanding of the long treatment process.展开更多
Background: A subset of cancer is particularly vulnerable to hydration prior to chemotherapy protocols;however, real-world outcomes-based data on pre-hydration elements of patients with tumor is sparse. Case Presentat...Background: A subset of cancer is particularly vulnerable to hydration prior to chemotherapy protocols;however, real-world outcomes-based data on pre-hydration elements of patients with tumor is sparse. Case Presentations: This retrospective case series describes a cohort of adult patients with terminal stage cancer who were seen between July 1, 2023, and September 25, 2023 and underwent various chemotherapy protocols, which, to our knowledge, represents comprehensive analysis of this patient population. We performed a retrospective search of patients identifying 50 cases of the chemotherapies of patients with cancer and extracted the clinical data via individual chart reviews. At the time of diagnosis, 24 patients were prehydrated with NaCl with KCl prior to the chemotherapy against the tumor, and 26 patients were taking normal saline only before undergoing cancer-specific treatment. Hydration and, prior chemotherapeutic agents use were the most common predepositse. Carcinomatosis peritoneii were the most common signs of the terminal stage of cancer within patients. Twenty-four patients were admitted to the hospital and two received NaCl with KCl hydaration prior to the platinum based chemotherapeutic agent treatment. Twenty-six patients received only normal saline hydration. Conclusion: Our data suggest that NaCl with KCl prehydaration results in better prognosis, including reduced tumor burden or decreased lymph node invasion, when compared to other vulnerable patients populations that receive only normal saline hydration. The graphene exfoliation effect of NaCl with KCl may have contributed to these results.展开更多
文摘Caring for a patient with terminal cancer poses difficulties for family caregivers. Although families of patients with cancer have been classified by type, little is known about the relation between family functioning and quality of life (QOL) in family caregivers. This study aimed to develop a typology of family functioning in family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer and then examine the relation between the family functioning and QOL of family caregivers. From December 2013 to August 2014, fifty-one family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer were recruited at three hospitals in Tokyo, Japan. Perceptions of family functioning were assessed with the Family Relationship Index, and its three subscores were classified into three groups by cluster analysis. Caregivers’ QOL was measured with the Caregiver Quality of Life Index-Cancer. The average total FRI score among 51 caregivers was 8.5 (SD = 2.8). Family functioning was categorized into three clusters: supportive (n = 12), communicative (n = 30), or conflictive (n = 8). Their QOL was categorized into two groups: the communicative group, with relatively high confliction, showed high QOL comparable to the supportive group. Family functioning in the families of patients with terminal cancer hospitalized in general wards was not good. For improving the QOL of family caregivers, it may be important for the family members to express their feelings and distress if they have conflicts.
文摘Satisfaction with care is an important indicator for family caregivers of patients with terminal cancer and is linked to the quality of life. Despite this, few studies have examined the aspects of satisfaction with care of family caregivers of inpatients with cancer in general wards. This qualitative study aimed to elucidate the elements of satisfaction with the care that inpatients with terminal cancer in general wards and their family caregivers receive from medical staff, as perceived by the family caregivers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 family caregivers of inpatients with terminal cancer. Participants were asked about the care received until then from medical staff, the features of satisfactory care, and the aspects of care they felt were unsatisfactory or could become satisfactory with improvement. The data were analyzed with the content analysis method and the six categories were extracted. For family caregivers of inpatients with terminal cancer in general wards, along with the care identified as important in palliative care, the methods of alleviating symptoms and explaining the patient’s condition were also important. The results highlight the importance of determining a patient-oriented approach and explanations together with each patient and family caregiver, based on an understanding of the long treatment process.
文摘Background: A subset of cancer is particularly vulnerable to hydration prior to chemotherapy protocols;however, real-world outcomes-based data on pre-hydration elements of patients with tumor is sparse. Case Presentations: This retrospective case series describes a cohort of adult patients with terminal stage cancer who were seen between July 1, 2023, and September 25, 2023 and underwent various chemotherapy protocols, which, to our knowledge, represents comprehensive analysis of this patient population. We performed a retrospective search of patients identifying 50 cases of the chemotherapies of patients with cancer and extracted the clinical data via individual chart reviews. At the time of diagnosis, 24 patients were prehydrated with NaCl with KCl prior to the chemotherapy against the tumor, and 26 patients were taking normal saline only before undergoing cancer-specific treatment. Hydration and, prior chemotherapeutic agents use were the most common predepositse. Carcinomatosis peritoneii were the most common signs of the terminal stage of cancer within patients. Twenty-four patients were admitted to the hospital and two received NaCl with KCl hydaration prior to the platinum based chemotherapeutic agent treatment. Twenty-six patients received only normal saline hydration. Conclusion: Our data suggest that NaCl with KCl prehydaration results in better prognosis, including reduced tumor burden or decreased lymph node invasion, when compared to other vulnerable patients populations that receive only normal saline hydration. The graphene exfoliation effect of NaCl with KCl may have contributed to these results.
