Last update:
18-Feb-2025

OBJECTIVE To assess the supportive care needs of women with breast cancer (BC).

METHOD An observational, crosssectional study was carried out between February and July 2016, in the day care units of two public general hospitals in Athens. A total of 95 BC patients were selected by convenience sampling. Data were collected using the Supportive Care Needs Survey-Short form (SCNS-SF34), which records whether patients have "no need" or "some need" in five needs subscales: "Psychological", "physical and daily living", "health system and information", "patient care and support", and "sexuality". The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 22.0 was used for the statistical analysis of the data.

RESULTS The mean age of the patients was 58.6±12.9 years, while the mean age of onset of BC was 55.6±13.1 years. Patients expressed a need for more support in the "health system and information" subscale (mean±SD: 23.9±12.4), followed by the subscales related to "psychological issues" (mean±SD: 19.7±9.3), "physical issues and daily life" (mean±SD: 11.9±5) and "patient care and support" (mean±SD: 9.2±4.6). Less supportive care needs were expressed in the "sexuality" subscale (mean±SD: 4.6±2.6). A statistically significant correlation was found between age (p<0.001), age of onset of disease (p<0.001), marital status (p=0.049), educational level (p=0.001), type of work (p<0.001), type of surgery (p=0.038) and the "sexuality" subscale. In addition, the type of work was associated with the subscales "health system and information" (p=0.022) and "patient care and support" (p=0.008) and the type of surgery with "patient care and support" (p=0.030).

CONCLUSIONS Patients with BC reported increased supportive care needs, and healthcare professionals should be oriented towards their satisfaction and the implementation of integrative supportive care plans.

Key words: Breast cancer, Informational needs, Needs, Physical needs, Psychological needs, Sexuality, Supportive care.