- Title
- The Effectiveness of Online Interventions for Patients with Gynecological Cancer: An Integrative Review
- Creator
- Lin, Huicong; Ye, Mingzhu; Chan, Sally Wai-Chi; Zhu, Jiemin; He, Honggu
- Relation
- Obstetrical and Gynecological Survey Vol. 75, Issue 8, p. 477-478
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/01.ogx.0000697388.75883.7c
- Publisher
- Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2020
- Description
- Cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment can have a significant impact on the quality of life of patients with gynecological cancer. Beyond physical symptoms including nausea, fatigue, pain, and changes in urination and bowel movements, there are often more nuanced and psychological effects including depression, decreases in social support, and adversely impacted sexual well-being and body image. Although evidence exists for the effectiveness of various face-to-face psychoeducational interventions with those living with cancer to address these issues and subsequent health outcomes, there is a lack of summarized evidence on efficacy of similar online interventions targeted to those with gynecological cancers. The aim of this systematic review was to synthesize published research addressing the effectiveness of online interventions on the quality of life, symptom distress, social support, psychological distress, sexual well-being, and body image of patients with gynecological cancer. Ten large electronic databases were searched for related articles (quantitative, qualitative, or mixed method study designs) published in English or Chinese. Articles were excluded if they combined multiple interventions including face-to-face, telephone, and online methods so that included trials only involved those analyzing peer- or professional-led online interventions or combinations of these 2 types. A total of 18 articles reporting data from 16 studies published between 2003 and 2019 were eventually included in the analysis, including 10 quantitative, 6 qualitative, and 2 mixed-methods articles. Twelve of these studies were published between 2016 and 2019, and the majority of patients recruited in six of the studies were highly educated. The medium of the online interventions varied, including Web sites, social media platforms, digital phenotyping platforms, online message boards, and an online mailing list. Other than one study, the interventions were led by healthcare providers that provided information or consultations. Intervention duration ranged from 30 days to 6 months and involved group discussions, cancer-related knowledge provisions, tailored information corresponding to the patients' coping styles, symptom reports and management, individual consultations, journal writing or sharing, synchronous live chat, and videoconferences. Nine studies found an increase in the quality of life, and 2 studies found an improvement in patients' body image after online interventions. Inconsistent results were observed in terms of improvement in symptom distress, social support, psychological distress, and sexual well-being after online interventions. The results of this review show that online psychoeducational interventions have been increasingly implemented as promising interventions to promote a wide range of health outcomes among patients with gynecological cancer. The results found positive impacts on quality of life and body image; however, further studies involving more representative populations with rigorous designs and sufficient sample sizes are necessary to determine the efficacy of online interventions.
- Subject
- patients; cancer diagnosis; treatment; online interventions; SDG 3; Sustainable Development Goals
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1496768
- Identifier
- uon:54232
- Identifier
- ISSN:0029-7828
- Language
- eng
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