Concerns of patients undergoing palliative chemotherapy for end-stage carcinomatous peritonitis

We sought to identify how nurses can help to alleviate the concerns of inpatients undergoing palliative chemotherapy when the treatment effects are weakening. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 8 inpatients receiving palliative chemotherapy for end-stage carcinomatous peritonitis at a university hospital. Qualitative inductive analysis of the interview data revealed 7 categories of patient concerns. Overall, patients faced many dilemmas and expressed concerns about wanting to continue chemotherapy while also thinking about discontinuing it. However, they also expressed hope, the strength of which was influenced and changed in complex ways by each treatment outcome and the severity of their physical symptoms. From these results, we suggest specific aspects of nursing care for patients with end-stage cancer who are receiving palliative chemotherapy that is becoming less effective.