The Need for Continuous Care in People with Advanced Lung Cancer

Abstract

Introduction: Lung cancer is a worldwide health problem; despite technological and therapeutic advances in oncology, there is a high percentage of people diagnosed in advanced stages of the disease, which have a greater demand for continuous care.

Objective: To identify the need for continuous care in people with advanced lung cancer.

Methods: A systematic review was conducted from January to July 2021. Document content analysis was performed, including original and review articles published from 2010 to 2021 in the SciELO, Google Scholar and Elsevier databases. The guiding question was elaborated using the acronym PICo. The search strategy was performed using the Health Sciences Descriptors (DeCS) Personal de enfermería [nursing personnel], Neoplasia de pulmón [lung neoplasia], and cuidados de enfermería [nursing care], together with the Boolean operator AND. The PRISMA flowchart was used for the formulation of the search strategy; 77 articles were identified and reviewed, of which 12 from the category evolution.

Conclusions: The carried out analysis regarding the need for continuous care in people with advanced lung cancer allowed the operational definition of this category, based on the characteristics of this entity or the demand faced by hospitalization services and nursing professionals in correspondence with the satisfaction of needs of these people, as well as it allowed establishing an approach within the theoretical references that support the topic.