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PURPOSE: Childhood or adolescent cancer survivors (CACS) are an understudied population in Colombia and, in general, in Central and South America. Worldwide, studies typically focus on high-income settings while approaching CACS' experiences from a biomedical or psychological perspective. However, both perspectives miss an important aspect of survivorship after childhood or adolescent cancer: the affected individual's subjective experiences of having a disabled body. This qualitative study aimed to explore the embodied experiences of Colombian adults who survived cancer during their childhood or adolescence to better understand how CACS relate to their altered body and world. METHODS: By integrating phenomenological insights and conducting comprehensive life-story interviews, we explored the various ways in which survivors' cancer experiences affect their bodily sense of self-from the acute phase of the disease until well into adulthood. A total of ten life-stories interviews and one focus group were carried out with seven CACS. All participants were survivors of a different type of childhood/adolescent cancer. The results were analyzed thematically, focusing on the embodied aspects of participants' experiences. RESULTS: We developed three main themes regarding the embodied cancer experience among participating CACS: Firstly, participants' body changes because of the cancer and its treatment, which makes them aware of their body. Secondly, they adapt to this experience in different bodily ways. Finally, they carry bodily traces of their cancer experience in the present as well as into the future. CONCLUSIONS: The CACS participating in this study report that their experience with cancer has been embodied throughout their lives, changing their sense of their body and how they relate to it, and leaving traces into the present and their imagined future.

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Treatment of penile cancer (PC) focuses on organ preservation, employing various surgical and non-surgical approaches. These interventions may lead to disfigurement, impacting patients' functional outcomes and psychosocial well-being. We reviewed studies related to penile health and PC up to February 2024, limited to studies published in English. Studies employing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) assessments have identified a detrimental association between aggressive treatment and overall health status, physical functioning, and relationships. In contrast, organ-sparing demonstrates improved measures related to HRQoL and sexual function. Assessment through validated questionnaires reveals diverse voiding outcomes, and varying impacts on QoL and sexual activity, emphasizing the necessity for multidisciplinary personalized care. Studies highlight substantial variations in sexual function, with patients reporting adaptations, reduced satisfaction, and concerns about body image and sexual well-being. Furthermore, unmet needs include challenges in patient-clinician communication, obtaining information, and accessing psychosocial support. Patient experiences underscore the importance of timely diagnosis, treatment access, and addressing psychological consequences. Organ-sparing approaches have higher QoL preservation and sexual function. Individualized support, including sexual therapy, support groups, and family counseling, is essential for post-treatment rehabilitation. Timely diagnosis and comprehensive care are paramount in addressing the multifaceted impact of PC on patients and families.

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PURPOSE: The American College of Surgeons Standard 4.8 requires an institution to implement a survivorship program to become a Commission on Cancer (CoC)-accredited cancer center. The online information offered by these cancer centers can help educate patients and their caregivers about available services. We assessed the content of survivorship program websites of CoC-accredited cancer centers in the United States. METHODS: Of the 1245 CoC-accredited centers for adults, we sampled 325 institutions (26%) based proportionately on the 2019 new cancer cases by state. Website pages of the institutions' survivorship programs were assessed for information and services offered using the COC Standard 4.8. We included programs for adult survivors of adult- and childhood-onset cancers. RESULTS: 54.5% of the cancer centers did not have a survivorship program website. Of the 189 included programs, most were aimed at adult survivors in general, rather than those with specific cancer types. On average, five essential CoC-recommended services were described, most commonly nutrition, care plans, and psychology services. The least mentioned services were genetic counseling, fertility, and smoking cessation. Most programs described services offered to patients who had completed treatment, while 7.4% of described services for those with metastatic disease. CONCLUSION: More than half of CoC-accredited programs did have information about cancer survivorship programs on their websites and when included, had variable and limited description of services. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: Our study provides an overview of online cancer survivorship services and offers a methodology that may be used by cancer centers to review, expand, and improve the information described on their websites.

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The perception of survivorship among the cancer communities of the Caribbean is largely unknown. This study focused on determining the perception and interest in cancer survivorship among breast cancer (BC) patients in Trinidad and Tobago, as a preliminary, to introducing a pilot survivorship program and evaluating its impact on this patient population. Participants were given a questionnaire to determine needs, expectations and interest in survivorship care. Baseline measurable outcomes reported in this article include the following: 1. Participants' satisfaction with their medical care follow-up plan (if any), 2. Participants' satisfaction with the amount of information provided by healthcare providers, and 3. Participants' satisfaction with their physician's overall concern about their well-being, ranked on a 5-point Likert scale. Participants also reported on the advice/ guidelines provided by their physicians, after surgery and/or on completion of treatment, what they did to cope with BC, and their expectations of what could have been done to improve the quality of care received. A second questionnaire was then used to measure the level of interest in participating in a Cancer Survivorship Program (CSP) with components such as: nutrition, psychosocial development, spiritual well-being, and yoga and mindfulness. The level of interest was ranked by participants on a 5-point Likert scale. Fifteen themes emerged from participants' responses to the first questionnaire. Nutrition stood out as the module of highest interest, followed by psychosocial development among BC patients.

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In epidemiological studies, higher calcium intake has been associated with decreased colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence. However, whether circulating calcium concentrations are associated with CRC prognosis is largely unknown. In this retrospective cohort analysis, we identified 498 patients diagnosed with stage I-IV CRC between the years of 2000 and 2018 in whom calcium and albumin level measurements within 3 months of diagnosis had been taken. We used the Kaplan-Meier method for survival analysis. We used multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression to identify associations between corrected calcium levels and CRC survival outcomes. Corrected calcium levels in the highest tertile were associated with significantly lower progression-free survival rates (hazard ratio (HR) 1.85; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.28-2.69; p = 0.001) and overall survival (HR 1.86; 95% CI 1.26-2.74, p = 0.002) in patients with stage IV or recurrent CRC, and significantly lower disease-free survival rates (HR 1.44; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-2.03; p = 0.040) and overall survival rates (HR 1.72; 95% CI 1.18-2.50; p = 0.004) in patients with stage I-III disease. In conclusion, higher corrected calcium levels after the diagnosis of CRC were significantly associated with decreased survival rates. Prospective trials are necessary to confirm this association.

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BACKGROUND: Despite increasing cancer incidence among young Latinas (<50 yrs.) in the US, little is known about how young, child-rearing Latinas cope with cancer in the US-Mexico border region. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to explore how young, child-rearing Latinas described their challenges, strengths, and social support sources for coping with cancer in the US-Mexico border region. METHODS: Nine Latinas that had been diagnosed with cancer, had at least one child 5 to 13 years old, and lived in one of two targeted border counties participated in audio-recorded, semi-structured focus groups (n = 6) or interviews (n = 3) in their preferred language (i.e., English or Spanish). Interview recordings were transcribed and inductively coded using methods based on grounded theory. RESULTS: Three major themes emerged. First, in reporting their physical and emotional struggles with cancer as the most difficult time of their lives, participants described feeling alone as they navigated treatment side effects and continued fear of cancer. Second, they explained figuring out how to live day-by-day, reporting the negative impact of cancer on their families and on their ability to maintain their roles as mothers. Third, they highlighted factors that gave them the strength to fight and carry on, emphasizing their children and their inner strength. CONCLUSIONS: Even with a supportive family, young Latina mothers felt alone as they navigated cancer (i.e., treatment, fear, and impact on their families) and as they worked to garner the strength to overcome the stress of cancer. Interventions for young Latina survivors should be designed to address their needs, build on their fighting spirit, incorporate the family, and connect them with other survivors for personalized support. Further research is warranted to better understand cancer survivorship among child-rearing Latina mothers experiencing a cancer diagnosis in under-resourced communities like the US-Mexico border region.

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Survivorship care for patients with prostate cancer requires careful consideration of unique disease-specific factors, including the prolonged natural disease history, the potential for competing health risks, and the consequences of long-term androgen deprivation therapy. However, current prostate cancer survivorship research is unfortunately limited by the lack of a robust supportive evidence base, variability in the definitions and measurement of survivorship outcomes, and a heavy reliance on expert opinion. As a result, the conduct of quality prostate cancer survivorship research is of increasing importance for patients, medical providers, and other key stakeholders. This manuscript harmonizes a path forward for improving prostate cancer survivorship by defining prostate cancer survivorship and survivorship research, as well as by highlighting key research priorities and cooperative mechanisms for survivorship studies within prostate cancer, with a particular focus on men with advanced disease.

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PURPOSE: Ovarian cancer is the most fatal of all gynecologic cancers, with a high relapse rate regardless of stage. Women treated for ovarian cancer, therefore, likely have supportive care needs that extend well beyond the time frame of first-line therapy. Unfortunately, there is minimal data describing these needs. The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand the supportive care needs of women with ovarian care at the end of treatment. METHODS: To better understand the issues faced by women with ovarian cancer, we conducted a public Twitter chat in collaboration with gynecologic cancer social media (#gyncsm). Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were performed. RESULTS: The chat occurred over a 1-hour time frame on Twitter and resulted in more than 300 unique and original tweets from 43 participants during the chat and an additional 60 unique participants following the chat. Survivors and physicians represented 32% and 11% of participants, respectively; caregivers, advocates, and other clinicians represented the remaining participants. Participants noted deep interest in receiving support during survivorship and dissatisfaction with currently available resources. Sentiment analysis showed that participants viewed the support from social media in a positive light and also revealed negative sentiment around the lack of support from health care providers at the end of treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Themes derived from the Twitter chat revealed the unique experiences of individuals with ovarian cancer after treatment, including a heightened sense of vulnerability. Understanding these themes represents an opportunity for clinicians to better understand and address the needs of this patient community.

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O progresso no diagnóstico precoce do câncer e terapias, bem como longevidade e o crescimento populacional, remete no aumento do número de indivíduos sobreviventes do câncer em todos os países, e com ele surge uma nova nomenclatura, a da sobrevivência ao câncer (SC). Este estudo teve como objetivo geral, analisar o conceito da SC na literatura de saúde e entre adoecidos adultos e/ou idosos diagnosticados com a doença. Para alcançar este propósito elaboramos mais quatro objetivos específicos que nos fez organizar a tese em três grandes etapas. A primeira etapa tem como objetivo analisar o conceito da SC apresentado na literatura de saúde, segundo o modelo evolucionário de análise conceitual de Rodgers. Este modelo está disposto em seis etapas, preconizando a análise dos estudos levantados pela análise temática indutiva e interpretados segundo o referencial teórico do conceito de cultura. Como resultado obtivemos os componentes do conceito, que nos auxilia na compreensão do mesmo, são eles: antecedente - ser diagnosticado com câncer; consequente - qualidade de vida dos sobreviventes do câncer (StC) e crescimento pessoal; atributos - processo de liminaridade e cuidado culturalmente congruente; termos substitutos - StC, sobrevivência em longo prazo e aquele que está vivendo após o diagnóstico do câncer, e por último os termos relacionados - sobrevida e reabilitação do câncer. Para a segunda etapa dessa pesquisa o propósito foi apreender os sentidos atribuídos a ser StC entre adoecidos, assim como, descrever os sentidos atribuídos ao conceito da SC entre adoecidos adultos e idosos por meio de sínteses narrativas. Desse modo, construímos um estudo qualitativo, com método narrativo e com referencial da antropologia médica. Realizamos entrevistas semi-estruturadas com 14 participantes diagnosticados com os diferentes tipos de câncer urológico de ambos os sexos, adultos e idosos, com no mínimo três meses pós-tratamento. Após transcrição dos dados, os mesmos foram analisados segundo a análise temática indutiva e duas sínteses narrativas foram elaboradas, a primeira delas é as dualidades da vida após o tratamento: da perda do autocontrole, da incerteza da recorrência da doença ao otimismo e esperança. Nessa síntese, discutimos acerca da experiência do sobrevivente com a doença, a perda de controle que a doença desencadeia e o consequente crescimento pessoal e aquisição do otimismo apesar das circunstâncias vividas. A segunda síntese é intitulada, o que eu sou? Sou um sobrevivente do câncer? Autorreflexão da identidade após o tratamento primário do câncer. Nela apreendemos a reflexão dos participantes sobre como se enxergam e veem a si mesmo e atribuem sentidos a ser ou estar doente, curado, vítima e principalmente StC. Com essas duas sínteses narrativas conseguimos descrever e nos aproximar dos sentidos atribuídos a SC. A terceira etapa foi desenvolvida em três tópicos, o primeiro consiste na comparação dos resultados da etapa um com a etapa dois, complementando com a importância da enfermagem oncológica no cuidado aos StC e uma reflexão sobre as políticas de saúde públicas atuais. Essa tese atualiza o conceito da SC e traz novas perspectivas sobre ele, contribuindo para a enfermagem oncológica

The progress in the early diagnosis of cancer and therapies, as well as the longevity and population growth remit to an increased number of cancer survivors around the world, giving rise to a new term, that of cancer survivorship (CS). The general objective in this study was to analyze the concept of CS in the health literature and among adult and/or elderly patients diagnosed with the disease. To achieve this objective, we elaborated four specific objectives, which made us organize the dissertation in three main phases. The objective of the first phase is to analyze the concept of CS presented in the health literature, according to Rodgers' evolutionary model of concept analysis. This model is arranged in six steps, recommending the analysis of the studies surveyed by means of inductive thematic analysis and their interpretation according to the theoretical framework of the culture concept. As a result, we obtained the components of the concept, which help us understand it. These are: antecedent - being diagnosed with cancer; consequent - quality of life of cancer survivors (StC) and personal growth; attributes - liminality process and culturally congruent care; substitute terms - StC, long-term survival and individuals living after the cancer diagnosis, and finally the related terms - cancer survival and rehabilitation. For the second phase, the purpose was to apprehend the meanings attributed to being StC among the patients, as well as to describe the meanings adult and elderly patients attribute to the CS concept through narrative syntheses. Thus, we built a qualitative study, using the narrative method and the reference framework of medical anthropology. We held semistructured interviews with 14 participants diagnosed with different types of urological cancer, male and female, adult and elderly, with at least three months post-treatment. After transcribing the data, they were analyzed according to inductive thematic analysis and two narrative syntheses were elaborated, the first being the dualities of life after the treatment; from loss of self-control, the uncertainty of the disease relapse to optimism and hope. In this synthesis, we discuss the survivor's experience with the disease, the loss of control the disease triggers and the consequent personal growth and gaining of optimism despite the circumstances experienced. The second synthesis is entitled: Who am I? Am I a cancer survivor? Self-reflection on the identity after the primary cancer treatment. In this synthesis, we apprehend the participants' reflection on how they see themselves and attribute meanings to being ill, cured, victim and mainly StC. These two narrative syntheses allowed us to describe and get closer to the meanings attributed to CS. The third phase was developed in three topics, the first being the comparison between the results of phase one and phase two, complemented with the importance of oncology nursing in care for StC and a reflection on the current public health policies. This dissertation updates the concept of CS and offers new perspectives, contributing to oncology nursing

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