Professionally led support groups for people living with advanced or metastatic cancer: a systematic scoping review of effectiveness and factors critical to implementation success within real-world healthcare and community settings.

Purpose: To examine the effectiveness of professionally led support groups for people with advanced or metastatic cancer, and identify factors critical to implementation success within real-world settings.

Methods: Databases (MEDLINE; PsychINFO; CINAHL) and grey literature were searched for empirical publications and evaluations. Articles were screened for eligibility and data systematically extracted, charted and summarised using a modified scoping review methodology.

Stakeholder perspectives on the impact of COVID-19 on oncology services: a qualitative study.

Background: As COVID-19 spread across the globe, cancer services were required to rapidly pivot to minimise risks without compromising outcomes for patients or staff. The aim of this study was to document changes to oncology services as a result of COVID-19 from the perspectives of both providers and receivers of care during the initial phase of the pandemic.

Methods: Participants were recruited between June and December 2020 through an email invitation via professional or consumer organisations, two hospital-based oncology services and snowballing.

Effect of core versus enhanced implementation strategies on adherence to a clinical pathway for managing anxiety and depression in cancer patients in routine care: a cluster randomised controlled trial.

Background: Optimal strategies to facilitate implementation of evidence-based clinical pathways are unclear. We evaluated two implementation strategies (Core versus Enhanced) to facilitate implementation of a clinical pathway for the management of anxiety and depression in cancer patients (the ADAPT CP).

Methods: Twelve cancer services in NSW Australia were cluster randomised, stratified by service size, to the Core versus Enhanced implementation strategy.

Barriers and enablers to implementing telehealth consultations in psycho-oncology.

Objective: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, use of telehealth to deliver care was recommended across the Australian health system. This study aims to explore the barriers and enablers to delivery of psycho-oncology services via telehealth and attitudes to use of telehealth in psycho-oncology.

Methods: Twenty-one psycho-oncology clinicians participated in semi-structured telephone interviews.

Psychosocial well-being and supportive care needs of cancer patients and survivors living in rural or regional areas: a systematic review from 2010 to 2021.

Purpose: To summarise what is currently known about the psychosocial morbidity, experiences, and needs of people with cancer and their informal caregivers, who live in rural or regional areas of developed countries.

Methods: Eligible studies dating from August 2010 until May 2021 were identified through several online databases, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsychINFO, and RURAL (Rural and Remote Health Database). Results were reported according to the PRISMA guidelines and the protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42020171764).

The impact of cancer-related fertility concerns on current and future couple relationships: People with cancer and partner perspectives.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine how cancer-related fertility concerns impact on couple relationships from the perspectives of people with cancer (PWC) and partners of people with cancer.

Methods: A qualitative research design was used, drawing data from open-ended responses to a survey and in-depth individual interviews. Eight hundred and seventy-eight PWC (693 women, 185 men) and 144 partners (82 women, 62 men), across a range of tumour types and age groups, completed a survey, and 78 PWC (61 women and 17 men) and 26 partners (13 women and 13 men), participated in semi-structured interviews.

Barriers and facilitators to community-based psycho-oncology services: A qualitative study of health professionals' attitudes to the feasibility and acceptability of a shared care model.

Objective: Psychological therapies combined with medication are effective treatments for depression and anxiety in patients with cancer. However, the psycho-oncology workforce is insufficient to meet patient need and is hard to access outside of the major cities. To bridge this gap, innovative models of care are required.

Is care really shared? A systematic review of collaborative care (shared care) interventions for adult cancer patients with depression.

Background: Collaborative care involves active engagement of primary care and hospital physicians in shared care of patients beyond usual discharge summaries. This enhances community-based care and reduces dependence on specialists and hospitals. The model, successfully implemented in chronic care management, may have utility for treatment of depression in cancer.

The development of a template for psychological assessment of women considering risk-reducing or contralateral prophylactic mastectomy: A national Delphi consensus study.

Objective: Risk-reducing mastectomies (RRM) and contralateral prophylactic mastectomies (CPM) are increasingly prevalent strategies to reduce breast cancer risk. Given the associated physical and emotional challenges, presurgical psychological assessment is frequently recommended for this population, yet limited research exists to guide this. This study aimed to reach a consensus on the most relevant content and format of a psychological consultation prior to RRM/CPM.

A systematic review of women's satisfaction and regret following risk-reducing mastectomy.

Objective: A systematic review of quantitative and qualitative studies, to describe patient satisfaction and regret associated with risk-reducing mastectomies (RRM), and the patient-reported factors associated with these among women at high risk of developing breast cancer.

Methods: Studies were identified using Medline, CINAHL, Embase and PsycInfo databases (1995-2016). Data were extracted and crosschecked for accuracy.

An exploration of Australian psychologists' role in assessing women considering risk-reducing or contralateral prophylactic mastectomy.

Objectives: Given increasing rates of risk-reducing mastectomies (RRM) and contralateral prophylactic mastectomies (CPM), and the potentially significant psychological sequelae of this irreversible procedure, health professionals (HPs) regularly refer patients to psychologists for pre-operative assessment and support. This is the first study to provide qualitative insights from HPs into the role of psychologists who are working with women considering RRM or CPM.

Materials And Methods: 24 HPs (psychologists, surgeons, breast care nurses and genetic counsellors) experienced in treating patients before or after RRM/CPM completed semi-structured interviews (n = 15) or participated in a focus group (n = 10).

An exploration of the prevalence and predictors of work-related well-being among psychosocial oncology professionals: An application of the job demands-resources model.

Objective: Burnout is reportedly high among oncology healthcare workers. Psychosocial oncologists may be particularly vulnerable to burnout. However, their work engagement may also be high, counteracting stress in the workplace.

Clinical pathway for the screening, assessment and management of anxiety and depression in adult cancer patients: Australian guidelines.

Purpose: A clinical pathway for anxiety and depression in adult cancer patients was developed to guide best practice in Australia.

Methods: The pathway was based on a rapid review of existing guidelines, systematic reviews and meta-analyses, stakeholder interviews, a Delphi process with 87 multidisciplinary stakeholders and input from a multidisciplinary advisory panel.

Results: The pathway recommends formalized routine screening for anxiety and depression in patients with cancer at key points in the patient's journey.

Burnout among psychosocial oncologists: an application and extension of the effort-reward imbalance model.

Objectives: Burnout is a significant problem among healthcare professionals working within the oncology setting. This study aimed to investigate predictors of emotional exhaustion (EE) and depersonalisation (DP) in psychosocial oncologists, through the application of the effort-reward imbalance (ERI) model with an additional focus on the role of meaningful work in the burnout process.

Methods: Psychosocial oncology clinicians (n = 417) in direct patient contact who were proficient in English were recruited from 10 international psychosocial oncology societies.

Talking about sex after cancer: a discourse analytic study of health care professional accounts of sexual communication with patients.

There is consistent evidence that health care professionals (hcps) are not addressing the sexual information and support needs of people with cancer. Thirty-eight Australian hcps across a range of professions working in cancer care were interviewed, to examine constructions of sexuality post-cancer, the subject positions adopted in relation to sexual communication, and the ways in which discourses and subject positions shape information provision and communication about sexuality. Participants constructed sexual changes post-cancer in physical, psychological and relational terms, and positioned such changes as having the potential to significantly impact on patient and partner well-being.

The development of novel interventions to assist the leaders of cancer support groups.

Purpose: The literature on cancer support groups supports the provision of ongoing education and training for cancer support group leaders, with evidence suggesting that more skilled and experienced leaders create better outcomes for group members. To address support and training needs reported by leaders, three novel interventions were developed and pilot-tested. These included a leaders' website and discussion forum, DVD and manual, and a 2-day training workshop.

Positive and negative interactions with health professionals: a qualitative investigation of the experiences of informal cancer carers.

Background: Empathic and informative interactions with health professionals are important for the well-being of people with cancer. However, there is a dearth of research examining the construction and experience of interactions with health professionals from the perspective of informal cancer carers.

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore how cancer carers subjectively position their experiences of interactions with health professionals, in particular, their construction of experiences as positive or negative, and the perceived consequences of such interactions.

Exploring the impact of training on the experience of Australian support group leaders: current practices and implications for research.

Background: Existing literature suggests that the effectiveness of a support group is linked to the qualifications, skills and experience of the group leader. Yet, little research has been conducted into the experiences of trained vs. untrained support group leaders of chronic-illness support groups.

Contacting bereaved relatives: the views and practices of palliative care and oncology health care professionals.

There are few data on the interactions of health care professionals with bereaved relatives. The objective of this study was to explore the current practice of health care professionals in oncology and palliative care in contacting bereaved relatives, and to elicit their views regarding the purpose, the optimal means, the format, timing, and content of these contacts. We conducted 28 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with health care professionals in Australia working in palliative care and oncology.

A qualitative analysis of reasons for leaving, or not attending, a cancer support group.

Factors that influence participation and long-term retention in cancer support groups were examined, through a study of 87 individuals who had dropped out of a cancer support group, and 26 individuals who had never attended such groups, using a combination of interviews and open-ended questionnaire responses. Support group attrition or non-attendance was positioned as resulting from both individual and group factors. Individual factors included resisting or leaving behind a cancer patient identity, presence of existing support, practical issues, and styles of coping.

What is the ideal support group? Views of Australian people with cancer and their carers.

Aims: To explore views on the ideal structure and process of support groups for cancer patients.

Patients And Methods: From 184 cancer support groups identified in NSW, Australia, 50 were randomly selected within strata of five variations in group structure: homogenous versus heterogenous participants; urban versus rural; community versus hospital setting, leader with cancer experience or not; and with professional training or not. Four hundred and seventy-six group members completed a questionnaire.

Sustaining leaders of cancer support groups: the role, needs, and difficulties of leaders.

Cancer support groups are an important source of support for cancer patients, yet little is known about the characteristics of, and barriers to, effective leadership, and the training needs of both professionally trained and untrained leaders. This study explored the views of 179 leaders of 184 cancer support groups in NSW, Australia, regarding these issues. Four hundred and sixteen members of 50 groups selected from the larger cohort completed questionnaires eliciting the importance of group processes, including leader qualities, and satisfaction with group leadership.