Breast cancer survivors–supportive care needs: systematic review

Abstract

ObjectivesTo achieve optimal survival care outcomes, all healthcare services must be tailored to patients’ specific needs, preferences and concerns throughout the survival period. This study aimed to identify supportive care needs from the point of view of breast cancer survivors.MethodsFollowing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines for reporting systematic reviews, a comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus was performed. The inclusion criteria were studies published from inception to the end of January 2022, covering all stages of breast cancer. The exclusion criteria were mixed-type studies relating to cancer, such as case reports, commentaries, editorials and systematic reviews, as well as studies that assessed patients’ needs during cancer treatment. Two quality assessment tools were used for the qualitative and quantitative studies.ResultsOf the 13 095 records retrieved, 40 studies, including 20 qualitative and 20 quantitative studies, were retained for this review. Survivors’ supportive care needs were classified into 10 dimensions and 40 subdimensions. The most frequently mentioned supportive care needs of survivors were psychological/emotional needs (N=32), health system/informational needs (N=30), physical and daily activities (N=19), and interpersonal/intimacy needs (N=19).ConclusionsThis systematic review highlights several essential needs for breast cancer survivors. Supportive programmes should be designed in order to take into consideration all aspects of these needs, particularly psychological, emotional and informational needs.

Unmet care needs of women who have undergone breast cancer surgery: A scoping review

“…A scoping review is recommended to comprehensively assess the breadth of the research topic and identify gaps worthy of further investigation (Pollock et al, 2021;Tricco et al, 2016). Several reviews have been conducted on this topic (Fan et al, 2023;Fiszer et al, 2014;Khajoei et al, 2023;Wabula et al, 2020). A systematic review of 23 quantitative studies examined the prevalence and factors associated with unmet care needs in women with breast cancer (Fiszer et al, 2014).…”

“…Similarly, a systematic review included 16 studies with a search timeframe from 2014 to 2020 (Wabula et al, 2020); however, that systematic review did not incorporate a critical appraisal process, which limited its robustness and generalisability. Another systematic review comprehensively examined the domains and subdomains of unmet care needs, utilizing a narrative synthesis to present several essential needs and provide clinical implications (Khajoei et al, 2023). However, these reviews did not show the research advancements and identified gaps that warrant further investigation.…”

Antiproliferative and Apoptotic Effects of Tempol, Methotrexate, and Their Combinations on the MCF7 Breast Cancer Cell Line

“…1 Specifically, breast cancer stands out as one of the most prevalent cancer types and holds the primary position among all cancers diagnosed in women globally (24.5%). 2 High incidence and mortality rates cause the studies on the treatment of this disease to increase everyday. 3 Presently, while surgical resection, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy are employed in the management of breast cancer, there is still no conclusive treatment available to proactively prevent the onset of breast cancer.…”

“…Cancer is an important disease with a high mortality rate which causes changes in the normal cell cycle by uncontrolled division of cells . Specifically, breast cancer stands out as one of the most prevalent cancer types and holds the primary position among all cancers diagnosed in women globally (24.5%) . High incidence and mortality rates cause the studies on the treatment of this disease to increase everyday …”

Breast cancer survivorship needs: a qualitative study

“…The need for help in dealing with problems such as financial distress [ 14 ], Pain [ 15 ], Memory problems [ 16 ], Fear of disclosure [ 17 ], concerns relating to body image, femininity, altered physical appearance, and self-confidence [ 18 ] are among the needs experienced by breast cancer survivors. In 2023, a systematic study on the needs of breast cancer survivors showed that most of these patients had psychological and informational needs [ 19 ]. In assessing the needs of BCSs, it is essential to consider culture, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, birthplace, and native language.…”