Applicability of Nursing Support for Patients With Terminal Cancer and Their Families: A Delphi Study

Background: This report investigates the applicability of nursing support for patients with cancer with a prognosis of months and weeks, and their families. Objectives: To evaluate the applicability of nursing support for five symptoms (dyspnea, pain, nausea/vomiting, constipation, and delirium) in patients with cancer during the last weeks of life, and the caregiver burden on their families. Design Setting: A Delphi study was used to determine the applicability of nursing support for patients with terminal cancer and their families. Eight experts in symptom palliation in Japan who have direct care or research experience with these populations were included. The Delphi method was used to assess nursing support types for prognoses of months and weeks. Consensus was defined as ≥70% agreement for either “high applicability” or “low applicability” of each support type. Results: A total of 50 nursing support types for 5 symptoms were evaluated as highly applicable for 92% (n = 46) of patients with cancer with a prognosis of months. For patients with cancer with a prognosis of weeks, 78% (n = 39) of the nursing support was rated as highly applicable. For both prognosis groups, all nursing support (n = 6) for caregiver burden was highly applicable. Conclusion: Applicability ratings of nursing support may be influenced by a high degree of invasiveness, accessibility of knowledge and information, and high expectations of effectiveness. Future studies are needed to verify the effectiveness of nursing support evaluated as highly applicable to patients with cancer during the last few months and weeks of life.