Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
Therapeutic advances have improved MBC survival rates but patient expressed needs such as time and financial toxicity have not been evaluated in Ireland to date. An anonymous online survey in 9 domains was designed by a cohort of 30 MBC patients facilitated by a multidisciplinary group. Patients with MBC ≥ 18 years living on the Island of Ireland were eligible to participate. The survey consisted of a mixture of open and closed questions and results were summarized by means of counts and percentages for categorical variables and by means of mean, standard deviation, median and range for continuous variables. Between July-October 2023, 246 patients completed the survey. Median age was 52.5. Overall, 70% reported visiting the hospital 1-3 days every 28 days, most commonly for bloods, treatment, and imaging. The majority of visits (58%) lasted between 1-3 hours with 6% reporting a duration of more than 6 hours for their hospital visits. In the past 6 months, 25% of respondents visited the emergency Department (ED), of whom 27% spent more than 24 hours in the ED. 28% of respondents were admitted to hospital in that timeframe, of whom 43% spent less than 5 days in hospital and 37% for 5-10 days. Assessing the time spent traveling to the hospital; 36% reported 30-60 mins and 29% reported less than 30 mins, 11% reported over 120 mins. 48% drove themselves, 38% were driven by others, 7% took public transport, and 1.6% used volunteer services. 42% reported spending over 60 hours in the last 6 months managing their MBC. 75% of patients worry about the financial problems they will have in the future as a result of their illness or treatment. 20% are unable to meet their monthly expenses. Over 66% are frustrated that they cannot work or contribute as much as they usually do. 23% would strongly agree that they are financial stressed, followed by 22% who would somewhat agree. 50% would agree that their illness has been a financial burden on them and their family. A MBC diagnosis has a substantial financial and time impact for patients. Care may be improved by improving provider awareness and by provision of financial and social service navigators.
Keogh et al. (Wed,) studied this question.