How Should We Enhance the Process and Purpose of Prognostic Communication in Oncology?

Radiation oncology outpatients’ patterns of life expectancy discussions

“…Given the range of poten- (Gilligan et al, 2017). Further trials are needed to conclusively establish their efficacy, particularly with cancer care providers other than oncologists (Sisk & Mack, 2018).…”

“…However, variation in approaches to communication about issues such as life expectancy has been reported in different patient groups (Gysels et al, 2012). Life expectancy information should be provided in a manner that is responsive to the individual patients' preferences (Sisk & Mack, 2018), but this does not always occur. For instance, in an Australian study undertaken with 1,431 medical oncology outpatients from 12 treatment centres, 24% of patients reported receiving too little information about their life expectancy, while 4% received too much information (Zucca et al, 2015).…”

“…High quality, coordinated cancer care and informed treatment decision making requires that patients, family members and cancer care providers have shared understanding of likely treatment outcomes, including life expectancy (Gramling, Fiscella, Xing, &, Fiscella, Xing&&, 2016;Sisk & Mack, 2018). Understanding the different sources of information about life expectancy that patients encounter, and patients' perceptions regarding the quality of this information can help identify areas where improvements need to be made (Sisk & Mack, 2018). Therefore, the aims of this study were to describe the (a) number and type of cancer care providers that radiation oncology outpatients report discussing life expectancy with, and (b) patients' perceptions of the acceptability and utility of life expectancy information.…”

Pediatric Goals of Care Communication

“…Providers may find it challenging to initiate GOC conversations because of (a) uncertainty about the child's prognosis, (b) obstacles to health care provider-to-provider communication, (c) lack of role clarity regarding who can initiate GOC discussions, and (d) discomfort with discussing the end of life and death 8,9 . Providers may feel unprepared or lacking in sufficient training to engage in GOC conversations, and these feelings can lead to provider avoidance of GOC conversations 10,11 . In many institutions, GOC conversations are typically reserved for physicians to initiate and lead with little nurse involvement, thus creating disjointed and inconsistent communication between physicians, parents of children with CHCs, and other members of the health care team 3,9 .…”

Com‐On Questionnaire: Development and validation of a questionnaire for evaluating communication skills of oncologists

“…Communication between physicians and patients is an important topic in the field of oncology, most notably with regard to medical attention and the satisfaction of patients (Fischer et al, 2019; Gilligan et al, 2017). Communication in oncology can be challenging because of the possible existential threat of life and the distressing treatments (Sisk & Mack, 2018). Patients experience insecurity, lack of control, stigma and anxiety associated with a cancer diagnosis and the complexity of medical information (Huang et al, 2021; Niedzwiedz et al, 2019).…”