Reduced symptom burden after visiting an outpatient supportive oncology clinic.

Authors

null

Kathryn C. Wrammert

Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA

Kathryn C. Wrammert, Gwendolynn Harrell, Michael O'Neill, Anjali Grandhige, Zachary O. Binney, Tammie E. Quest

Organizations

Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, Emory Palliative Care Center, Atlanta, GA

Research Funding

No funding sources reported

Background: Outpatient palliative care in supportive oncology clinics (SOC) is growing and has shown promise in controlling symptoms. We sought toinvestigate the impact on symptom burden of a SOC in a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. Methods: New and returning SOC patients referred from our health system’s oncologists from November 2011 through May 2014 completed the Condensed Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale plus a sexual dysfunction structured assessment. Visits include a structured symptom assessment and personalized treatment plan from the clinic’s part-time physician and/or nurse practitioner. Patients rated from 0-4 how bothersome 15 cancer symptoms were. Descriptive statistics were calculated. We used the Wilcoxon signed rank test to compare symptom scores at patients’ first and second visits. Results: 135 patients had multiple SOC visits. Mean age was 54.7 (SD 12.5) years. 55.3% were female. The most common cancers were breast, lung, and head and neck (18.1% each). Median time between visits was 29 days (mean: 52.8, range: 2-446). The most bothersome symptoms at baseline were pain (mean 3.1, SD 1.3), lack of energy (2.4, SD 1.3), and difficulty sleeping (2.1, SD 1.6). Least bothersome were dyspnea (0.8, SD 1.1), sexual problems (0.9, SD 1.4), and nausea (1.0, SD 1.3). Energy, pain, drowsiness, constipation, sleep, worrying, sadness, and nervousness were significantly improved at follow-up with reductions between 0.2 (drowsiness) and 0.5 (pain) points (all p<0.05). Weight loss trended toward improved (p=0.053). Conclusions: 8 of 15 symptoms significantly improved after the first visit to a small-scale SOC. These reductions may underestimate the SOC’s effect if disease was progressing or overestimate differences if disease was shrinking, but such data were unavailable. Larger multi-site trials with well-defined interventions and control groups are needed.

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Abstract Details

Meeting

2014 Palliative and Supportive Care in Oncology Symposium

Session Type

Poster Session

Session Title

General Poster Session B: <span>Early Integration of Palliative Care in Cancer Care, Patient-Reported Outcomes, and Psycho-Oncology</span>

Track

Early Integration of Palliative Care in Cancer Care,Patient-Reported Outcomes: Mechanisms of Symptoms and Treatment Toxicities,Psycho-oncology,End-of-Life Care,Survivorship

Sub Track

Patient-Reported Outcomes: Mechanisms of Symptoms and Treatment Toxicities

Citation

J Clin Oncol 32, 2014 (suppl 31; abstr 204)

DOI

10.1200/jco.2014.32.31_suppl.204

Abstract #

204

Poster Bd #

E10

Abstract Disclosures

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