School of Nursing, Faculty of Science Medicine and Health, University of Wollongong, Liverpool, New South Wales, Australia.
School of Nursing, Faculty of Science Medicine and Health, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
Eur J Cancer Care (Engl). 2021 Nov;30(6):e13519. doi: 10.1111/ecc.13519. Epub 2021 Oct 10.
Sex and intimacy are basic needs and important aspects of quality of life among humans. This focus of this review was to synthesise and present the best available qualitative evidence on the sexual life experiences and needs of Chinese adults living with cancer. Moreover, the first-hand experience, meaning and perspective about the sexual life changes and support needs during the survival and extended treatment period were synthesised in this study.
A systematic review of qualitative studies was undertaken using the Joanna Briggs Institute System for the Unified Management, Assessment and Review of Information (JBI-SUMARI). A comprehensive search of five databases: CINAHL, MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar were undertaken from 2010 until February 2020 using defined criteria. Methodological quality and data extraction were undertaken using JBI-SUMARI.
Eight studies were included in the review. A total of 39 findings were extracted and aggregated into eight categories based on similarity of meaning. Three synthesised themes were generated: (i) misconceptions and lack of education or information regarding sexual activity exists for patients with cancer, (ii) concerns for overall health and well-being as well as physical and psychological changes can alter sexual desire and behaviours in patients with cancer and (iii) lack of sexual activity and intimacy can create relationship problems.
Sexual relationships are intimate, personal and private in Chinese culture and beliefs. Chinese adults living with cancer report many neglected issues on sexual well-being in various domains. Adequate and consistent education about sexual intimacy issues from health care providers was identified as an important need. Unaddressed needs might affect adults' coping strategies in managing their sexual relations during various stages of cancer treatment and beyond. It must be noted that there are many Chinese ethnic minorities living with cancer outside the Greater China region. The evidence provides valuable recommendations to health care providers globally to consider the specific sexual needs and initiate culturally sensitive sexuality education and care support for Chinese adults living with cancer.
性和亲密关系是人类的基本需求和生活质量的重要方面。本综述的重点是综合和呈现现有最佳定性证据，说明中国癌症患者的性生活经历和需求。此外，本研究还综合了在生存和延长治疗期间，有关性生活变化和支持需求的第一手经验、意义和观点。
采用 Joanna Briggs 研究所统一管理、评估和审查信息系统（JBI-SUMARI）对定性研究进行系统综述。从 2010 年到 2020 年 2 月，使用定义的标准对五个数据库（CINAHL、MEDLINE、PubMed、Scopus 和 Google Scholar）进行了全面搜索。使用 JBI-SUMARI 进行方法学质量和数据提取。
综述纳入了 8 项研究。共提取并汇总了 39 个发现，根据相似的意义分为 8 个类别。生成了 3 个综合主题：（i）患者对癌症患者性行为的误解和缺乏教育或信息；（ii）对整体健康和幸福感以及身体和心理变化的关注会改变癌症患者的性欲和性行为；（iii）缺乏性活动和亲密关系会导致关系问题。
在中国文化和信仰中，性关系是私密、个人和隐私的。中国癌症患者报告了在多个领域对性健康的许多被忽视的问题。卫生保健提供者提供关于性亲密问题的充分和一致的教育被认为是一个重要的需求。未满足的需求可能会影响成年人在癌症治疗的各个阶段以及之后管理性关系的应对策略。必须指出，大中华区以外的许多中国少数民族也患有癌症。该证据为全球卫生保健提供者提供了有价值的建议，以考虑中国癌症患者的具体性需求，并启动对文化敏感的性教育和关怀支持。
