Are patient education and self-care advantageous for patients with head and neck cancer? A feasibility study

Abstract

Aim: This study evaluates whether patient education and individually self-care reduces pain and improves QoL, mood and sleep during and after radiotherapy treatment for patients with head and neck cancer. Design: A longitudinal, two-armed feasibility study design was performed. Methods: Sixty-four participants with curative intent were included in the study. All participants answered questions about pain three times a week and completed a survey questionnaire about pain, QoL, psychological aspects and barriers towards pain management at baseline, at 4 weeks and at 10 weeks. Thirty-four of the participants attended in two education sessions on pain based on their beliefs about pain and received individualized self-care instructions based on their weekly rating of pain. Result: This study did not find any significant group differences for the pain, QoL, mood and sleep.