ArticleOncology nursing forum2016
Cognitive and Situational Precipitants of Loneliness Among Patients With Cancer: A Qualitative Analysis.
Article in Oncology nursing forum, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Social relationship challenges perceived by cancer patients and survivors: a qualitative meta-synthesis.BMC psychology · 2025Pooled it
- Unpacking the layers: a meta-ethnography of cancer survivors' loneliness.Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice · 2019Pooled it
- The lived experiences of social isolation among cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-synthesis.International journal of nursing studies advances · 2026Review
- Loneliness and its associated factors among patients with cancer in China: a sequential explanatory mixed-methods study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- "I just feel alone and by myself": how adolescents experience loneliness when their parent has cancer.BMC public health · 2026Article
- The Chinese version of the stigma of loneliness scale in people with chronic diseases: an assessment of psychometric characteristics.BMC public health · 2025Article
- The psychological effects of protective isolation on haematological stem cell transplant patients: an integrative, descriptive review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025Review
- Navigating the shadow of fear: a qualitative study unveiling the lived experience of fear of cancer recurrence among Chinese gastric cancer survivors undergoing chemotherapy.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- Experiences and perceived benefits of remotely delivered dance/movement therapy for adult cancer patients: a multi-method program evaluation.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2024Article
- Correlates of common concerns in older cancer survivors of leukemia and lymphoma: results from the WHI LILAC study.Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice · 2023Article
- Factors associated with self-reported social isolation among patients with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic.Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2022Article
- Loneliness among adolescents and young adults with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional survey.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2022Article
- Loneliness and Psychological Distress in Women Diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer: Examining the Role of Self-Perceived Burden, Social Support Seeking, and Social Network Diversity.Journal of clinical psychology in medical settings · 2022Article
- A Conceptual Review of Loneliness in Adults: Qualitative Evidence Synthesis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Review
- Living with cancer in the COVID-19 pandemic: An Italian survey on self-isolation at home.European journal of cancer care · 2021Article
- Embracing the complexity: Older adults with cancer-related cognitive decline-A Young International Society of Geriatric Oncology position paper.Journal of geriatric oncology · 2020Review
- Patient and caregiver perceptions of lymphoma care and research opportunities: A qualitative study.Cancer · 2019Article
- Cancer-related loneliness mediates the relationships between social constraints and symptoms among cancer patients.Journal of behavioral medicine · 2018Article
- Thoracic surgeon and patient focus groups on decision-making in early-stage lung cancer surgery.Future oncology (London, England) · 2018Article
- The Cancer Loneliness Scale and Cancer-related Negative Social Expectations Scale: development and validation.Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
PURPOSE/
objectivesTo identify situations and thoughts that may precipitate or protect against loneliness experienced by patients with cancer. RESEARCH APPROACH: Qualitative.
settingThe hematology/oncology clinic at the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center, an outpatient oncology center in Indianapolis.
participantsPurposive sample of 15 patients undergoing treatment for multiple myeloma or non-Hodgkin lymphoma. METHODOLOGIC APPROACH: Individual, semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted. Theoretical thematic analysis was used to analyze interview data.
findingsFactors that appeared to precipitate loneliness included several situations (e.g., physical isolation, social constraints such as criticism) and thoughts (e.g., unmet expectations for visits or questions about health, belief that others do not understand their cancer experience). Several situations (e.g., social support, normal routine) and thoughts (e.g., beliefs that time alone is desirable and that others' discomfort with cancer-related discussions is normative) appeared to protect against loneliness. Certain social situations were loneliness-inducing for some patients and not for others, suggesting that patients' thoughts about their situations, rather than the situations themselves, have the greatest impact on their loneliness.
conclusionsThe current study fills gaps in loneliness theory by identifying cancer-related situations and thoughts that patients associate with their loneliness. Consistent with theory, patients reported feeling lonely when they had negative thoughts about their social situations.
interpretationFindings inform nursing assessment and intervention strategies to incorporate into care plans. For instance, when conducting assessments, nurses should be more attentive to patients' satisfaction with their social environment than actual characteristics of the environment. Normalizing patients' experiences and encouraging positive thoughts about others' behavior may reduce patients' loneliness.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.