Researchers Outline Agenda to Elucidate Caregivers’ Experience

EAST LANSING, Mich—Although much of cancer care now takes place in the outpatient and home setting, the oncology care system has not fully incorporated "family care" for patients at home. While this shift has translated into increased family involvement in day-to-day care, there are few documented, effective strategies to guide family members caring for patients with advanced cancer.

The cover article of the July/August 2001 issue of CA—A Cancer Journal for Clinicians calls for a research agenda to more fully elucidate the cancer caregiver’s experience throughout the illness and treatment trajectory, and identify the means to effecting positive outcomes for people with cancer, their family caregiver, and the health care system.

"Caregivers’ well being must be our concern," say authors Barbara Given, RN, PhD; Charles Given, PhD; and Sharon Kozachik, RN, MSN, of Michigan State University. They suggest four areas for future research: symptom management strategies, patient-caregiver communication, defining patient outcomes, and cost effectiveness.