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A qualitative research exploring the experiences of patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors for advanced lung cancer

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Abstract

Purposes

In patients with advanced lung cancer, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) dramatically extended survival. We aimed to investigate the experiences of patients with advanced lung cancer who are receiving ICIs, with a focus on perceptions and sentiments on ICIs, to inform future research and clinical care.

Methods

Patients were recruited from January to July 2022 at Tianjin Medical University Hospital Cancer Institute & Hospital. The method of purposive sampling was used. Patients with stage IV lung cancer who were taking ICIs as a single therapy were recruited. Data were gathered using semi-structured and face-to-face interview. An inductive approach to analysis was used.

Results

Of the 42 eligible patients, 27 were invited, 20 agreed to participate, and ultimately 17 patients completed the interview. A total of 5 themes were extracted: suffered from adverse effects but generally tolerable; focus on survival, hope, and expectation; uncertainty about durability of response and the future; poor knowledge and attitude of ICIs; and financial stress and guilt over family.

Conclusion

These findings make an important contribution to healthcare professionals’ understanding of what it is like to be a patient with advanced lung cancer who is receiving ICIs. In general, the experience of immunotherapy is different from that of chemotherapy; financial and family pressures and uncertainty issues are likely to be heavier in this population. Oncology specialist nurses should provide tailored education to improve the patient’s knowledge of immunotherapy, especially to improve risk awareness of immune-related adverse events and objective prognosis expectations.

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Data availability

Due to the potential for breach of confidentiality, the interview transcripts are not available.

Code Availability

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute & Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin’s Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China

    Yunxia Hou, Jing Li, Lijuan Yu & Ling Yan

  2. Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China

    Yingge Hou

Authors
  1. Yunxia Hou
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  2. Yingge Hou
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  4. Lijuan Yu
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  5. Ling Yan
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Contributions

All authors made substantial contributions to the conception or design. Interviews with participants were completed by Yunxia Hou and Lijuan Yu. Jing Li and Yingge Hou did the statistical analysis. Yunxia Hou and Yingge Hou drafted the first manuscript, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ling Yan.

Ethics declarations

Ethics approval

This study was approved by the institutional review board at the Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute & Hospital. This study was performed in line with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Informed consent

This study was approved by the institutional review board at the Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute & Hospital (Approval No. bc2022158), and informed consent was obtained from all participants.

Consent to participate

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Consent for publication

The participant has consented to the submission of their quotes to the journal.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no competing interests.

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Cite this article

Hou, Y., Hou, Y., Li, J. et al. A qualitative research exploring the experiences of patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors for advanced lung cancer. Support Care Cancer 31, 498 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-023-07965-3

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