Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34791519›Full record

ArticleSupportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer2022

Demonstrating the importance of cultural considerations at end of life utilizing the perspective of Indian patients with cancer.

Mahati Chittem, Jaklin Eliott, Ian Olver

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Article in Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 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

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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

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. What Is a Good Death in South Asia? A Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis.Journal of nursing scholarship : an official publication of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing · 2025
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Mahati ChittemDepartment of Liberal Arts, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Kandi, Telangana, 502285, India. mahati@iith.ac.in.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8978-3544
Jaklin EliottSchool of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3154-4516
Ian OlverSchool of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5478-1576

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThis study aimed to understand Indian cancer patients' hopes and beliefs about the end of life, particularly focusing on how this informed their preferences regarding end-of-life treatment. In India, individuals' lives are mainly guided by culturally driven practices of doing right by one's family and believing death is predetermined.

methodsIndian patients (25) diagnosed with advanced incurable cancer and aware of their prognosis participated in semi-structured interviews exploring their hopes as they approached the end of life. The interview also sought to understand patients' views and beliefs about do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders and euthanasia. The interviews were transcribed and analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis.

resultsTwo major themes were identified: (i) a desire for living or dying comprising sub-themes of perceptions of current responsibilities, and having a fighting spirit versus feelings of despair, and (ii) God was the ultimate decision-maker of life and death. Furthermore, patients understood that a do-not-resuscitate order meant euthanasia and responded accordingly. Some patients reported hoping for death due to the pain and resultant suffering. However, patients did not talk about euthanasia openly, instead choosing to describe it within a larger framework of life and death.

conclusionsIndian patients reaching the end of life valued their family responsibilities which determined their desire to live or die. However, all patients believed that God decided on their life and death. It is important to consider cultural perspectives on DNR or euthanasia and to address patients' pain management needs towards the end of life.

Indexed as

NeoplasmsTerminal CareDeathHumansIndiaPainResuscitation OrdersCancerDo not resuscitateEnd of lifeEuthanasiaHopeIndia

Identifiers

PMID34791519

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.