Effects of a nursing intervention on subjective distress, side effects andquality of life of breast cancer patients receiving curative radiation therapy - A randomized study

The purpose of this randomized study was to investigate whether a nursing i ntervention using Orem's self-care theory as a framework would affect subje ctive distress, side effects and quality of life as perceived by breast can cer patients receiving curative radiation therapy. The intervention consist ed of five 30-min sessions once a week during the treatment period and two follow-up sessions after completion of treatment. The experimental group co nsisted of 67 patients, as did the control group. Measurements were collect ed five times: at baseline before commencement of treatment, at weeks 3 and 5 (completion of treatment) and follow-up periods of 2 weeks and 3 months. No measurable effect of the nursing intervention was found for side effect s or quality of life but nursing intervention proved to have a positive eff ect in minimizing stress reactions (p = < 0.05). It is suggested that a nur sing intervention should be implemented for breast cancer patients receivin g curative radiation therapy.