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- Title
Reporting of paclitaxel-induced peripheral neuropathy symptoms to clinicians among women with breast cancer: a qualitative study.
- Authors
Salgado, Teresa M.; Quinn, Caroline S.; Krumbach, Emily K.; Wenceslao, Iris; Gonzalez, Martha; Reed, Holly L.; Syverson, Jillian G.; Etz, Rebecca S.; Vangipuram, Kiran; Barker, Melissa R.; Henry, N. Lynn; Farris, Karen B.; Hertz, Daniel L.
- Abstract
<bold>Purpose: </bold>Cases of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) under-reporting have been sporadically described in the literature, but no studies have focused on actively examining this behavior. Our primary aim was to identify women who purposefully under-reported CIPN, along with reasons for doing so. A secondary aim was to explore factors enabling or hindering communication of CIPN to clinicians.<bold>Methods: </bold>Semi-structured interviews were conducted with women with breast cancer who had received paclitaxel in a prospective observational study. The interview guide was developed based on factors hypothesized to influence side effect disclosure to clinicians. Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and thematically content analyzed.<bold>Results: </bold>Thirty-four women were interviewed. Three main themes emerged from the analysis: (1) enablers of CIPN reporting (e.g., positive relationship with the oncology team, sufficient appointment time, existence of alternative communication channels to office visits, expectation of CIPN as a side effect); (2) deterrents to CIPN reporting (e.g., perception of need to complete the full course of therapy, fear of treatment discontinuation, lack of knowledge of long-term consequences of CIPN); and (3) balancing survival versus functional impairment due to CIPN. Women prioritized efficacy over CIPN until physical functioning was meaningfully affected. No patients reported purposeful CIPN under-reporting, but three women admitted having considered doing so.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>Despite the lack of evidence of CIPN withholding, women considered both the effectiveness and the toxicity of paclitaxel treatment, as well as beliefs about treatment and long-term consequences of CIPN and relationship with the oncology team, when deciding whether to report CIPN symptoms.
- Subjects
BREAST cancer; PERIPHERAL neuropathy; SYMPTOMS; QUALITATIVE research; HOT flashes; TERMINATION of treatment; ANTINEOPLASTIC agents; RESEARCH funding; PACLITAXEL; BREAST tumors; LONGITUDINAL method; DISEASE complications
- Publication
Supportive Care in Cancer, 2020, Vol 28, Issue 9, p4163
- ISSN
0941-4355
- Publication type
journal article
- DOI
10.1007/s00520-019-05254-6