Pain and Fatigue Management: Results of a Nursing Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

These data support the "value-added" role of nursing interventions for symptom management and improved quality of life during the course of cancer treatment.

Managing Symptoms in Patients with Advanced Lung Cancer During Radiotherapy: Results of a Psychoeducational Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Previous studies using combined symptom severity scores as the outcome measure were not suited to multivariate testing and unable to identify the effect of the intervention on individual symptoms. 8,15 The current study is one of the few PEI studies conducted in an Asian population with cancer. As evidenced by patients' lack of previous experience in using psychosocial orientated interventions and conclusions drawn from previous reviews; 32,38,39 the application of PEI in this context can be considered novel.…”

“…Patients with advanced lung cancer undergoing RT are particularly vulnerable to the symptoms of breathlessness, fatigue and anxiety [3][4][5] which impact on patient function. [6][7][8] Patients with lung cancer often experience symptoms concurrently and they usually have overlapping and interactive effects. 9,10 A symptom cluster is defined as three or more concurrent symptoms that are moderately correlated with each other.…”

“…6,8,15 In the last few decades, large numbers of studies evaluating PEI in patients with cancer have been conducted. 12 Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) appears to be the most prevalent intervention to be studied, followed by patient education.…”

A Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Symptom Management in Patients With Advanced Cancer

“…Cognitive behavioral interventions (CBIs) use a multimodal approach toward symptom management and are particularly effective in decreasing symptom severity for patients with cancer (Antoni et al, 2001;Dodd & Miaskowski, 2000;Given et al, 2002;Quesnel, Savard, Simard, Ivers, & Morin,2003;Sheard & Maguire, 1999). However, most studies have been limited to testing the effectiveness of CBIs in reducing the severity of a particular symptom, such as fatigue or pain (Oliver, Kravitz, Kaplan, & Meyers, 2001;Quesnel et al), or in patients who present with a particular site of cancer, such as breast cancer, regardless of the stage of disease Cruess et al, 2000).…”

“…Such beliefs may be caused by providers' (and general practitioners in particular) lack of in-depth knowledge regarding symptom management techniques (Barclay, Todd, Grande, & Lipscombe, 2002). Regardless of the underlying cause, reports of ineffective symptom management in patients with advanced cancer underscore the need to evaluate new interventions in this patient population (Brescia, 2004;Given et al, 2002;Oncology Nursing Society, 2003).…”