Quality of life, self-compassion and mindfulness in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy: A cross-sectional study

Patient experiences: a qualitative systematic review of chemotherapy adherence

Adherence to chemotherapy treatment is recognized as a crucial health concern, especially in managing cancer patients. Chemotherapy presents challenges for patients, as it can lead to potential side effects that may adversely affect their mobility and overall function. Patients may sometimes neglect to communicate these side effects to health professionals, which can impact treatment management and leave their unresolved needs unaddressed. However, there is limited understanding of how patients' experiences contribute to improving adherence to chemotherapy treatment and the provision of appropriate support. Therefore, gaining insights into patients' experiences is crucial for enhancing the accompaniment and support provided during chemotherapy.This review synthesizes qualitative literature on chemotherapy adherence within the context of patients' experiences. Data were collected from Medline, Web of Science, CINAHL, PsychINFO, Embase, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library, systematically searched from 2006 to 2023. Keywords and MeSH terms were utilized to identify relevant research published in English. Thirteen articles were included in this review. Five key themes were synthesized from the findings, including positive outlook, receiving support, side effects, concerns about efficacy, and unmet information needs. The review underscores the importance for healthcare providers, particularly nurses, to focus on providing comprehensive information about chemotherapy treatment to patients. Adopting recommended strategies may assist patients in clinical practice settings in enhancing adherence to chemotherapy treatment and improving health outcomes for individuals living with cancer.

Effect of ginger and P6 acupressure on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting: a randomized controlled study

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effect of ginger with P6 acupressure in preventing and treating chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) in cancer patients.

METHOD

A total of 172 participants were randomly divided into the control, ginger, acupressure, and joint groups, who were hospitalized in the Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University from February and September 2022. The baseline characteristics, nausea, vomiting, and retching, benefit finding, functional living index-emesis, treatment satisfaction, and adverse reaction, were used in data collection.

RESULTS

No significant difference was found in benefit finding and adverse reactions among the four groups (P > 0.05). Ginger significantly improved delayed CINV and function living index-nausea (P < 0.05) but had no significant effect on acute CINV, retching, and delayed vomiting, functional living index-emesis, and treatment satisfaction (P>0.05). Acute nausea and retching, delayed nausea, vomiting, and retching, functional living index-emesis, and treatment satisfaction were effectively improved in the acupressure and joint groups (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Ginger with P6 acupressure may contribute to improving CINV in patients undergoing chemotherapy.

The effect of mindfulness-based interventions on mental health outcomes and wellbeing of informal caregivers of people with mental illness: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The increasing prevalence of mental illness has resulted in a growing burden on informal caregivers. Mindfulness-based interventions, as a form of psychotherapy, have shown efficacy in alleviating psychological stress and enhancing emotional and physical well-being. However, the utilisation of mindfulness-based interventions for informal caregivers of individuals with mental illness remains limited. The aim of the meta-analysis is to evaluate the impact of mindfulness-based interventions on the mental health and well-being among informal caregivers of people with mental illness. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across seven electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, APA PsycINFO and CINAHL Ultimate) from the inception of these databases until 20 July 2023. Two authors independently screened the studies and extracted the relevant data. The meta-analysis was performed by using Stata 12.0 software, and the effect sizes were calculated utilising standardised mean difference (SMD) along with their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI). The meta-analysis included 13 studies with 1007 participants, and the results demonstrated that mindfulness-based interventions were efficacious in reducing stress (SMD = -0.80, 95% CI [-1.33, -0.28], p = 0.003), depression (SMD = -0.43, 95% CI [-0.62, -0.24], p < 0.001) and caregiver burden (SMD = -0.21, 95% CI [-0.40, -0.01], p = 0.038), and enhancing the mindfulness level (SMD = 0.37, 95% CI [0.09, 0.65], P = 0.010) and quality of life (SMD = 0.22, 95% CI [0.04, 0.39], p = 0.015) among informal caregivers of people with mental illness, but not on anxiety reduction (SMD = -0.19, 95% CI [-0.49, 0.10], p = 0.198). Furthermore, future research should aim to employ more rigorous methodologies to confirm the effectiveness.

Development and preliminary validation of the Brief Self-Compassion Inventory

Research and clinical interest in self-compassion has grown due to its associations with physical and mental health benefits. Widely used measures of self-compassion have conceptual and psychometric limitations that warrant attention. The purpose of this project was to develop a new self-compassion measure, the Brief Self-Compassion Inventory (BSCI), and test its psychometric properties. We developed items for the BSCI based on theory, prior research, and expert and cancer patient feedback. The BSCI was then tested with adults diagnosed with breast, gastrointestinal, lung, or prostate cancer (N = 404). Confirmatory factor analysis suggested a unidimensional structure, and internal consistency reliability was excellent. Construct validity of the BSCI was established through its correlations with psychological variables hypothesized to be related to self-compassion, such as mindfulness, acceptance of cancer, and other coping strategies. Furthermore, measurement invariance testing of the BSCI indicated that it could be used across patients of varying genders, cancer types, and stages of illness. In conclusion, the 5-item BSCI was determined to be psychometrically sound and suitable for use with adults of varying genders, cancer types, and stages of disease. The measure warrants testing with other medical and nonclinical populations.

Effectiveness of mindfulness-based supportive psychotherapy on posttraumatic growth, resilience, and self-compassion in cancer patients : A pilot study

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based supportive psychotherapy on posttraumatic growth, resilience, and self-compassion of the cancer patients.

METHODS

This quasi-experimental study was conducted as a pre-test, post-test, and follow-up inquiry with a control group. A total of 30 patients who met the inclusion criteria were selected through the convenience sampling method out of all patients referred to ALA Cancer Prevention and Control Center (MACSA) in Isfahan city, Iran. They were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. The experimental group received mindfulness-based supportive psychotherapy (SP) for 6 sessions of 90-min, while the control group only received treatment as usual (TAU). Finally, both groups were re-evaluated through the post-test and follow-up stages after 3 months. The research instruments included the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and Neff's Self-Compassion Scale. Collected data were analyzed using the repeated measures analyses of variance (ANOVA).

RESULTS

The results showed that the group supportive psychotherapy significantly increased posttraumatic growth (p < 0.05) and resilience (p < 0.05), and improved self-compassion (p < 0.05) in the experimental group over the post-test phase. At the post-intervention phase, the effect sizes were Cohen's d = 0.72, d = 0.68, and d = 0.63 for post-traumatic growth, resilience, and self-compassion, respectively. Changes were constantly implemented in the follow-up phase as well.

CONCLUSION

According to the results of the present study, mindfulness-based supportive psychotherapy could be used along with usual medical treatment in order to improve post-traumatic growth, resilience, and self-compassion in cancer patients.