Disparities found in perception of symptoms between patients and oncology team
Menée aux Etats-Unis par enquête auprès de 1 122 patients atteints de cancer (âge médian : 58 ans) et 800 professionnels de santé, cette étude analyse les disparités de perceptions dans la prévalence et l'intensité de la douleur ou de la fatigue liée à la maladie
Key Points •The prevalence and importance of pain and fatigue in patients with cancer continue to be underestimated by oncology physicians and nurses. •Clinicians need to assess symptoms of fatigue and pain carefully at each encounter. •An increased awareness of patient-reported outcomes and education for HCPs is needed to improve patients' QOL. A recent study has demonstrated that oncology physicians and nurses underestimate the prevalence and impact of fatigue and pain in their patients with cancer (Support Care Cancer. 2016;24:4357–4363). In previous studies, fatigue has been shown to have a major impact on the quality of life (QOL) of patients with cancer, and multiple studies have indicated that there is a poor correlation between clinician perceptions and patient-reported symptoms, including fatigue and pain. The objective of the current study was to investigate whether these disparities persisted despite the recent increase in attention that supportive care issues and patient-reported outcomes have received in modern oncology practice. “Fatigue continues to be an important issue for patients with cancer,” says Lori Williams, MSN, PhD, lead author and assistant professor in the department of symptom research at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. “It should be assessed routinely. Patients with cancer-related fatigue can be encouraged to begin programs of physical activity and referred to rehabilitation services. Routine assessment by the clinician can assess the effectiveness of interventions for each patient.” For the current study, a sample of adult patients with a nonhematologic malignancy was recruited via e-mail from the general population of the United States by online survey firms. The patients had to have received chemotherapy for at least 2 months, initiated chemotherapy fewer than 14 months before the survey, and received chemotherapy within 1 year of the survey. Oncology health care providers (HCPs) practicing in the United States were also recruited via e-mail. The HCPs were required to be currently working at least 30 hours per week and to have spent at least 50% of their work time caring directly for adults with solid tumors who were receiving chemotherapy. From June to November 2012, a total of 550 of 1122 eligible patients completed a survey. Within this patient group, approximately 75% were women and 25% were men, with a median age of 58 years. Metastatic disease was present in 43% of patients, 95% were currently receiving or had received chemotherapy, and 27% were currently receiving or had received targeted or biologic therapy, with greater than one-half of patients receiving therapy at the time of the survey (...)