Symptom incongruence trajectories in lung cancer dyads

There is little known about the pattern of change in patient-family member symptom incongruence across the lung cancer trajectory.

This study examined trajectories of patient-family member incongruence in perceptions of patient physical function, pain severity, fatigue, and dyspnea in lung cancer dyads and explored the association with family member grief after patient death.

Lung cancer patients and their family members providing care (n = 109 dyads) rated patient symptoms and physical function five times over 12 months. Symptom incongruence trajectories were analyzed using multilevel modeling.

Patient-family member incongruence did not significantly change over time, on average, except in the case of patient physical function where incongruence significantly declined. There was significant variability around trajectories of incongruence for all symptoms except fatigue. Exploratory analysis on a subsample of 22 bereaved family members found that incongruence regarding patient fatigue was associated with family member grief two months after patient death.

Findings suggest the importance of modeling symptom incongruence over time and taking a dyadic approach to the illness context to identify interventions that promote adjustment and quality of life for both patient and family member.