Hai Phong University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hai Phong, Vietnam.
California State University, Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA, USA.
J Pain Symptom Manage. 2021 Aug;62(2):364-372. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2020.11.030. Epub 2020 Dec 4.
Although cancer and HIV/AIDS are common causes of death in Vietnam, limited data exist on their palliative care needs. As palliative care becomes part of Universal Health Coverage, evidence is needed to scale up appropriate care.
To elicit from people with cancer or HIV/AIDS in Vietnam, and their caregivers, the specific multidimensional symptoms and concerns that cause serious health-related suffering.
Semistructured, qualitative, in-depth interviews were conducted with stage III or IV cancer patients, people with HIV/AIDS, and their caregivers at three cancer treatment centers and two HIV/AIDS treatment centers in northern, central, and southern Vietnam. Interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis.
Sixty people were interviewed (21 cancer patients, 20 people with HIV/AIDS, 19 caregivers). Pain and other physical symptoms severely impacted their daily lives. Psychological distress-including sadness, depression, worry, and a feeling of having no future-was mentioned frequently, and it was exacerbated by disease progression and by social problems such as financial difficulties and, among people with HIV/AIDS, stigma. Caregivers also suffered physically and psychosocially. Spirituality emerged as a source of strength for patients. Findings highlighted patients' and family caregivers' desire for more information about diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment, a shift toward individual decision-making.
The findings demonstrate common, multidimensional, and severe suffering among people living with cancer or HIV/AIDS and their caregivers in Vietnam. These qualitative data should guide development of optimum clinical assessment tools and palliative care services for these populations.
尽管癌症和艾滋病是越南常见的死亡原因，但关于它们的姑息治疗需求的数据有限。随着姑息治疗成为全民健康覆盖的一部分，需要有证据来扩大适当的护理。
从越南的癌症或艾滋病患者及其照护者那里，了解导致严重健康相关痛苦的具体多维症状和关注点。
在越南北部、中部和南部的三个癌症治疗中心和两个艾滋病治疗中心，对三期或四期癌症患者、艾滋病患者及其照护者进行了半结构化、定性、深入的访谈。使用主题分析对访谈进行了分析。
共访谈了 60 人（21 名癌症患者、20 名艾滋病患者、19 名照护者）。疼痛和其他身体症状严重影响了他们的日常生活。心理困扰——包括悲伤、抑郁、担忧和没有未来的感觉——经常被提及，并且随着疾病的进展以及社会问题（如经济困难，对于艾滋病患者而言，还有污名化）而加剧。照护者也在身体和心理社会方面受到影响。灵性成为患者的力量源泉。研究结果强调了患者和家庭照护者对更多关于诊断、预后和治疗信息的渴望，以及向个体化决策的转变。
研究结果表明，越南的癌症或艾滋病患者及其照护者存在常见的、多维的和严重的痛苦。这些定性数据应指导为这些人群开发最佳的临床评估工具和姑息治疗服务。
