Perioperative real-life experiences and care needs of patients undergoing lung cancer ablation: A qualitative study

BackgroundLung cancer (LC) remains the most common malignancy in China with high mortality. The early stages of LC tend to manifest no apparent symptoms or only mild coughing, to which patients attach no importance.<b>Objective:</b> To gain an in-depth understanding of the perioperative real experiences and care needs of patients undergoing lung cancer ablation, to make a reliable basis for the construction of care programs for perioperative complications of lung cancer ablation, and to further improve the quality of perioperative clinical care interventions for such patients.MethodsSixteen lung cancer patients undergoing lung cancer ablation who were hospitalized in the Department of Oncology of our hospital from April 2023 to October 2023 as well as six healthcare professionals of Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital were recruited by purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the enrolled individuals by using a phenomenological approach, and the Colaizzi's 7-step analysis method was used to analyze, summarize and refine the themes of the interview data.ResultsA total of seven study themes were identified emotional reactions of ablation patients, financial stress, needs for information on treatment outcomes and health education during recovery, reassurance of living and care needs during hospitalization, concerns about the treatment of complications, correct and detailed preoperative assessment, and doctor-nurse collaboration for good management of patient complications.ConclusionIn the clinical nursing of patients with lung cancer, we should construct standardized perioperative ablation nursing process as soon as possible, create diversified health guidance materials, strengthen the continuity of nursing after discharge, improve patients' understanding of the disease, pay attention to their emotional changes, and provide more maintenance support, so as to reduce complications and improve the quality of life of patients with lung cancer ablation.