Njelesani Janet, Kaufman Lindsey, Ruiz Sienna, Brown Victoria Leigh, Hunleth Jean
New York University, New York, NY, USA.
Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, USA.
J Cancer Surviv. 2025 May 13. doi: 10.1007/s11764-025-01820-6.
Family members play an essential role in cancer care, but greater attention is needed on how young people who are providing this care for their parents with cancer can be supported. The aim of this qualitative study was to identify strategies for allied healthcare providers to support young caregivers caring for parents with cancer.
We conducted semi-structured interviews with 56 participants, including young caregivers (n = 10), parent survivor (n = 12), and allied healthcare providers (n = 34). Interviews were audio-taped, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using a qualitative content analysis approach.
Findings illuminate that young people are giving care with limited or no training and are not receiving intervention, support, or assistance from allied healthcare providers. Participants recognized that greater support is needed to meet young caregivers' needs, and the nature of the support needed changes over the course of cancer treatment. Allied healthcare providers could support young people through skills training, social and emotional support, and connecting to community resources.
Findings reveal the unique and dynamic needs of young caregivers and underscore the need for healthcare systems to expand their support models to include these young, often invisible, caregivers.
Given the chronic nature of cancer, the number of young caregivers is likely to increase; therefore, allied health professionals need to be better at identifying and supporting them as part of the family-centered cancer care provided.
家庭成员在癌症护理中发挥着至关重要的作用，但对于如何支持那些为患癌父母提供护理的年轻人，还需要给予更多关注。这项定性研究的目的是确定联合医疗保健提供者支持照顾患癌父母的年轻护理者的策略。
我们对56名参与者进行了半结构化访谈，包括年轻护理者（n = 10）、癌症康复者父母（n = 12）和联合医疗保健提供者（n = 34）。访谈进行了录音，逐字转录，并采用定性内容分析方法进行分析。
研究结果表明，年轻人在没有或仅有有限培训的情况下提供护理，且未得到联合医疗保健提供者的干预、支持或帮助。参与者认识到需要更多支持以满足年轻护理者的需求，并且在癌症治疗过程中所需支持的性质会发生变化。联合医疗保健提供者可以通过技能培训、社会和情感支持以及连接社区资源来支持年轻人。
研究结果揭示了年轻护理者独特且动态的需求，并强调医疗保健系统需要扩展其支持模式，将这些往往不为人所见的年轻护理者纳入其中。
鉴于癌症的慢性性质，年轻护理者的数量可能会增加；因此，联合健康专业人员需要更善于识别并支持他们，将其作为以家庭为中心的癌症护理的一部分。
