Effects of Patient Education and Self-Management in Cancer Patients Who Experience Chemotherapy-Induced Taste Alterations
Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Summary
The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Does completing a standard assessment increase the detection of chemotherapy induced taste changes compared with usual care (no assessment)? What TA are experienced? Are there any patterns in TA symptom occurrence based on age, sex, race/ethnicity, cancer type, chemotherapy agent, etc. 2. Do patients take action to deal with the TA? What strategies are used? Do patients in the intervention group use the assessments to select interventions? 3. Do the interventions lessen TA symptoms and maintain food intake? Is the treatment (in-depth assessment and education) more effective in lessening the intensity of TA than usual care? Which level of assessment is needed to support symptom management to reduce symptom severity? Participants will: Complete baseline assessment before starting their initial chemotherapy infusion (all patients) Participate in baseline patient education based on assigned intervention (usual care vs. treatment) Engage in TA management between chemotherapy infusion clinic visits based on education Visit the clinic for chemotherapy infusions as scheduled; Complete TA assessments and reporting based on intervention; Work with nurse coaches to answer questions and help with the intervention. Complete study data collection on the 4th chemotherapy cycle (but continue intervention) Complete final data collection at 6 months
Description
BACKGROUND/RATIONALE: Chemotherapy-induced taste alteration (TA) is a common problem for cancer patients with reported prevalence ranging from 35% to 69%. TA systems are associated with decreased dietary intake, malnutrition, and decreased quality of life with no known treatment. Researchers have demonstrated that breast cancer patients were able to control TA with the use of patient self-monitoring and self-management strategies, but these strategies are relatively untested. Research is needed to confirm the effectiveness of this nurse-led intervention when delivered by clinicians with a hete…