Influencing Factors of Unmet Care Needs Among Taiwanese Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer during Acute Stage of Survivorship: A Preliminary Study

PURPOSE: To identify predictors of various dimensions of unmet care needs and longitudinally investigate the unmet care needs, psychological distress and quality of life (QoL) over a three-month post-treatment period of Taiwanese non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) survivors. METHODS: This preliminary study employed a longitudinal repeated measurement design (the day after surgery (T0) and 1 (T1) and 3 (T2) months after completing treatment) with a convenience sampling in NMIBC survivors (n = 50). RESULTS: The results of the study revealed that the highest levels of unmet care needs were the informational and physical/psychological domains and significant improvements in unmet care needs, anxiety levels, and various QoL domains were noted over the 3-month period. Predictors varied by four domains of unmet care needs: higher anxiety levels were associated with greater unmet needs across domains (β = 0.60 ∼ 0.18); concerns about future worries predicted higher physical/psychological needs (β = 0.07); bloating and flatulence symptoms predicted greater informational and medical care needs (β = 0.07 ∼ 0.04); and the presence of informal caregiver support was linked to higher physical/psychological needs (β = 1.99). Receiving more transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) cycles was associated with lower communication and medical care needs (β = -1.05 ∼ -1.38). CONCLUSION: The preliminary study indicated that survivors' diverse dimensions of unmet care needs varied by personal characteristics, psychological distress and QoL. It is recommended to closely monitor NMIBC survivors especially while undergoing 1-2 cycles of TURBT and experiencing anxiety, concerns about the future worries, and bloating and flatulence symptoms, to alleviate the impacts of their care needs. In addition, these survivors may be beneficial from the provision of tailored survivorship care plans (SCPs) to enhance their diverse unmet care needs.