Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32948975›Full record

SynthesisQuality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation2021

Quality of life of cancer patients at palliative care units in developing countries: systematic review of the published literature.

Dwi Gayatri, Ljupcho Efremov, Eva Johanna Kantelhardt, Rafael Mikolajczyk

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
28citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

28 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  19. Impact of Community Palliative Care on Quality of Life among Cancer Patients in Bangladesh.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023
    Observational
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Dwi GayatriInstitute for Medical Epidemiology, Biometrics and Informatics (IMEBI), Interdisciplinary Center for Health Sciences, Medical School of the Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Strasse 8, 06097, Halle (Saale), Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9641-2100
Ljupcho EfremovInstitute for Medical Epidemiology, Biometrics and Informatics (IMEBI), Interdisciplinary Center for Health Sciences, Medical School of the Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Strasse 8, 06097, Halle (Saale), Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9595-3194
Eva Johanna KantelhardtInstitute for Medical Epidemiology, Biometrics and Informatics (IMEBI), Interdisciplinary Center for Health Sciences, Medical School of the Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Strasse 8, 06097, Halle (Saale), Germany. eva.kantelhardt@uk-halle.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7935-719X
Rafael MikolajczykInstitute for Medical Epidemiology, Biometrics and Informatics (IMEBI), Interdisciplinary Center for Health Sciences, Medical School of the Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Strasse 8, 06097, Halle (Saale), Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1271-7204

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThis systematic review aims to summarize factors that influence the quality of life (QOL) of advanced cancer patients in palliative care (PC) in developing countries. Understanding this context in developing countries milieu is necessary; however, this outcome is rarely reported.

methodsFollowing the PRISMA guidelines, the electronic databases MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and Web of Science were systematically searched using the search terms: QOL, cancer, PC, and names of all developing countries. Studies with less than ten subjects, qualitative or pilot studies, reviews, conference abstracts, and that reported validation of QOL questionnaires were excluded.

resultsFifty-five studies from 15 developing countries in the African (n = 5), Latin America and the Caribbean (n = 10), and Asian (n = 40) region were included in the narrative synthesis. 65.4% were cross-sectional, 27.3% were cohort studies, 7.3% were RCTs or quasi-experimental studies. Around 30 QOL factors were studied with 20 different types of QOL instruments. Advanced cancer patients who were older, married/ever married, participated in additional care within PC, used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and practiced spirituality/religiosity showed higher QOL score. Low educational level and high depression were associated with a lower QOL.

conclusionVarious factors affect QOL among cancer patients in PC. Patients valued the use of CAMs; however, the quality and safety aspects should be properly addressed. Important factors that influenced the QOL score were social and spiritual support. While there is a general need to develop PC strategies further, recognizing patients' needs should be prioritized in national cancer programs.

Indexed as

Cross-Sectional StudiesDeveloping CountriesHumansNeoplasmsPalliative CareQuality of LifeAdvanced cancerDeveloping countryPalliative careQuality of lifeSystematic review

Identifiers

PMID32948975
PMCPMC7886760

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

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.