Strengthening support for cancer caregivers: an investigation of caregiving perceptions and informational needs

Introduction

Unpaid caregivers play a key role in supporting people with cancer. However, their needs and perspectives are often overlooked, and few healthcare institutions offer dedicated support programs. To address this, we assessed and compared the perceptions and informational needs of unpaid caregivers and cancer patients.

Methods

Caregivers (N=115) and cancer patients (N=99) from a large urban cancer centre completed a one-time survey evaluating their perceptions of the medical care and caregiver support they had received, their informational needs, as well as their health literacy and computer proficiency. Caregivers also completed validated scales evaluating caregiver burden, preparedness, competence, and reward.

We compared patients’ and caregivers’ reported perceptions and analyzed their informational needs across knowledge domains. We conducted stepwise regression to understand the relationship between participant characteristics and scores, including health literacy and caregiving burden, and their informational needs.

Results

Patients underestimated many aspects of caregivers’ experience, and caregivers were less satisfied than patients with the medical care received. Caregivers with higher health literacy had lower informational needs and caregiver burden. Both groups expressed a strong need for medical information in addition to psychological, social, and practical support.

Conclusion

These results reveal a pressing need for proactive medical and practical training for caregivers to complement psychological interventions. Furthermore, interventions to improve public health literacy may enable those who become caregivers to better navigate the challenges of their role.