IMPACT OF NURSING INTERVENTIONS ON PALLIATIVE CARE CANCER PATIENTS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW
Keywords:
Palliative care; oncology nursing; nursing interventions; advanced cancer; quality of lifeAbstract
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46296/gt.v9i18edespsep.0411
Abstract
Advanced cancer often causes pain, shortness of breath, nausea, anxiety and a decline in quality of life; palliative care therefore aims to alleviate suffering and address the physical, emotional, social and spiritual needs of the patient and their family, with nursing playing a central role due to its ongoing contact with the patient, the family and the interdisciplinary team. This study analysed the impact of nursing interventions on symptom management and quality of life in adult cancer patients receiving palliative care through a systematic review in accordance with PRISMA 2020, with searches conducted in PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, CINAHL, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, SciELO and LILACS, including studies published between 2021 and 2026 in Spanish and English. Of the 110 initial records, 18 studies were included in the qualitative synthesis. The most relevant interventions were systematic symptom assessment, pharmacological and non-pharmacological pain management, patient and family education, continuous monitoring, emotional support and interdisciplinary coordination, supported by tools such as the Edmonton Scale, the EORTC QLQ-C30 and the FACIT-Pal. The evidence indicates a reduction in pain, dyspnoea, nausea and anxiety, alongside improvements in physical, emotional and social well-being, patient autonomy and the burden on carers.
Keywords: Palliative care; oncology nursing; nursing interventions; advanced cancer; quality of life.
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