The effect of nursing consultation involving cancer survivors on newly diagnosed cancer patients’ quality of life

INTRODUCTION: Cancer and its treatments have a significant effect on the Quality of Life (QoL) of people who suffer from cancer. Nursing consultation involving cancer survivors might be beneficial for other patients as they successfully managed and lived with cancer. But controversies still exist in the research findings as how nursing consultation involving cancer survivors might influence other cancer patients’ QoL. Therefore, a research study was done to determine the effect of nursing consultation with the presence of cancer survivors on cancer patients’ QoL. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was a quasi-experimental research using a pre-post test design, which was conducted in Sayyed- AL-Shohada Hospital affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran, in 2010. Twenty-two adult patients who suffered from acute leukemia who were receiving chemotherapy were selected. They participated in a nursing consultation group in which cancer survivors were actively engaged. The patients’ QoL was assessed before, 1 week, and 1 month after the nursing consultation using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core-30 Version 3 (EORTC QLQ-C30-V3) questionnaire. RESULTS: Comparing QoL mean scores of patients in the symptom, performance, and the general health status scales showed that there was not any significant change in the QoL scores before, 1 week, and 1 month after the consultation. CONCLUSION: It seems that the nursing consultation with the presence of cancer survivors couldn’t enhance patients’ QoL, although it might prevent worsening the patients’ QoL. Cancer has deleterious impacts on patients’ QoL and nursing consultation may not improve QoL in a short period of time. It is recommended that the study be conducted with a larger sample, in a longer time and with a case-control design.