Lymphoedema management by independent hospices: a cohort study

Objectives

To consider the type and cost of clinical services delivered for patients with lymphoedema.

Design

Clinical cohort.

Setting

Independent hospices in the North East of England.

Participants

All those attending lymphoedema services delivered by the independent hospice sector 2017/2018.

Results

13 914 lymphoedema appointments were recorded across four independent hospices. Twelve thousand nine hundred and sixty-five were attended, which equates to an approximate cost of £1.56 million. Those with lymphoedema were predominately aged over 65 (54.5%) years with females across all age groups being more predominant (3.3:1). Where the cause was recorded, 66% of activity related to lymphoedema was not secondary to cancer.

Conclusion

Independent hospices are providing a specialist lymphoedema service, which is high in volume and largely invisible. This service is delivered at not insignificant cost. In contrast to previous work, in the North East of England, lymphoedema sufferers are more likely to be female and not have the condition in association with cancer. The availability of rigorous data collection will allow the independent hospices to understand better the delivery and associated costs of lymphoedema services.

Prostate screening health beliefs and practices of African American men

The purpose of this study was to investigate the health beliefs and practices of African American men regarding prostate cancer screening. A descriptive non-experimental design was used with a self-administered questionnaire to identify participants' knowledge level, health beliefs and practices related to the screening and early detection of prostate cancer in African American men. Results indicate that most participants had a high level of prostate cancer knowledge, early detection and had prostate screening done on a regular basis. They believed prostate cancer was not preventable but if contracted treatment would be painful and impair sexual function. Other significant beliefs included: good health habits were important, most rated their health as good or excellent, and they rely on their faith to stay healthy. Findings of this study provide culturally appropriate information which may contribute to developing prostate cancer prevention programs in African American communities.