Prevalence and Correlates of Unmet Supportive Needs of Nigerian Patients With Cancer

Diagnosis and treatment of cancer are associated with significant psychological distress, and patients face a broad range of challenges that create a vacuum of unmet needs felt by patients, such as a loss of personal control and frustration. The aim of the current study was to determine the magnitude, distribution, and correlates of unmet needs in Nigerian patients with cancer.

Using a descriptive cross-sectional approach, we assessed 205 patients with cancer who attended oncology outpatient clinics at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Eligible patients were administered the Supportive Care Needs Survey (SCNS) -Short Form 34 with a focus on five domains of need: psychological, health system and information, physical and daily living, patient care and support, and sexuality.

Mean age was 47.4 ± 12.3 years and patients were predominantly female (96.6%). The most common diagnosis was breast cancer (92.2%), and mean duration since diagnosis was 20.9 ± 21.9 months for all patients. Mean SCNS score was 83.9 ± 24.8 and at least 46% of participants indicated unmet needs in 15 items of the SCNS. The most frequent unattended needs were related to the health information (53.4%), physical and daily living (49.4%), psychological (48.5%), sexuality, and patient care and support domains. None of the factors considered-age, sex marital status, family type, educational attainment, employment status, economic status, the presence of financial support, social support, and cancer type-was significantly predictive of unmet needs in these patients (P > .05).

Nigerian patients with cancer experience considerable levels of unmet needs. These needs require urgent and long-term interventions to help patients achieve increased care satisfaction and a better quality of life.