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Perceptions of time spent pursuing cancer care among patients, caregivers, and oncology professionals

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Abstract

Purpose

Patients with cancer spend significant time receiving treatment and recovering from side effects. Little is known about how patients and their caregivers perceive time spent receiving cancer treatment and how this impacts health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Our study aims to characterize perceptions of time invested in receiving cancer therapy as experienced by patients, caregivers, and oncology professionals.

Methods

We conducted semi-structured interviews with patients undergoing treatment for advanced lung cancer and melanoma, their informal caregivers, and oncology professionals (physicians, nurses, social workers, and chaplains). Participants received and provided care at a tertiary cancer center. Interviews were audiorecorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were analyzed qualitatively using predominantly inductive coding to identify themes relating to time perception and cancer care.

Results

We interviewed 29 participants (11 patients, 7 informal caregivers, and 11 oncology professionals) and found they consistently differentiated between time remaining in life (“existential time”) and time required to manage cancer treatment and symptoms (“chronological time”). Patients and caregivers reported distress around the mechanics of oncologic care that interrupted their daily lives (hobbies, activities). Participants described the impact of time invested in cancer care on dimensions of quality of life, ranging from minimal to substantial negative impact.

Conclusions

We found that the time spent undergoing cancer treatment affects well-being and often prevents patients and caregivers from participating in meaningful activities. The investment of personal time undergoing cancer therapy for patients with advanced solid tumors merits further study and can enhance communication between patients, caregivers, and their oncologists.

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Funding

The Stanford Cancer Institute Survivorship program provided financial support for the study to support gift card reimbursement for patients and transcription services.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Medical Oncology, University of Washington, 825 Eastlake Ave E, Mail Stop CE2-102, Seattle, WA, 98115, USA

    Evan T. Hall

  2. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA

    Evan T. Hall

  3. College of Osteopathic Medicine, New York Institute of Technology, Old Westbury, NY, USA

    Deepa Sridhar

  4. Division of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Surbhi Singhal

  5. Stanford Healthcare, Stanford, CA, USA

    Touran Fardeen

  6. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Sheila Lahijani & Ranak Trivedi

  7. Center for Innovation to Implementation, VA Palo Alto Healthcare System, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Ranak Trivedi

  8. VA Palo Alto Healthcare System, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Caroline Gray

  9. Stanford Cancer Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Lidia Schapira

Authors
  1. Evan T. Hall
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  2. Deepa Sridhar
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  3. Surbhi Singhal
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  4. Touran Fardeen
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  5. Sheila Lahijani
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  7. Caroline Gray
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  8. Lidia Schapira
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Evan T. Hall.

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The study was approved by the Stanford University Institutional Review Board.

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The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Hall, E.T., Sridhar, D., Singhal, S. et al. Perceptions of time spent pursuing cancer care among patients, caregivers, and oncology professionals. Support Care Cancer 29, 2493–2500 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-020-05763-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-020-05763-9

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