Exploring Unmet Needs in Prostate Cancer Care: A Cross-sectional Descriptive Study

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Patient-Reported Outcomes
• Supportive Care

Background:

• Prostate cancer significantly impacts quality of life.
• Supportive care needs for prostate cancer patients are not well understood.
• This study addresses unmet needs and supportive care priorities in men treated for prostate cancer.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe patient-reported unmet needs.
• To explore supportive care priorities.
• To identify factors associated with treatment regret.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional survey of 162 men treated for prostate cancer.
• Utilized the Supportive Care Needs Survey Short Form 34 and qualitative questions.
• Employed descriptive statistics, logistic regression, and qualitative framework analysis.

Main Results:

• Highest unmet needs were in information, self-management, and sexual function domains.
• Qualitative analysis highlighted the importance of relationships, information, and hindsight.
• Identifying three or more unmet needs correlated with treatment regret (OR 5.92).

Conclusions:

• Understanding unmet needs informs better supportive care interventions.
• Prioritizing relationships and improving access to information and self-management resources are crucial.
• Further research and clinical attention to prostate cancer supportive care are warranted.