TY - JOUR
T1 - Survivorship issues in long-term survivors of locally recurrent rectal cancer
T2 - A qualitative study
AU - McKigney, Niamh
AU - Waldenstedt, Sophia
AU - LRRC-QoL Collaborators
AU - Gonzalez, Elisabeth
AU - van Rees, Jan M.
AU - Thaysen, Henriette Vind
AU - Angenete, Eva
AU - Velikova, Galina
AU - Brown, Julia M.
AU - Harji, Deena P.
AU - Christensen, Henrik Kidmose
AU - Rothbarth, Joost
AU - Verhoef, Cornelis
AU - Gee, Elliott
AU - Ulmer, Kaitlyn
AU - Karimuddin, Ahmer
AU - Taylor, Claire
AU - Gould, Laura
AU - Burns, Elaine
AU - Jenkins, John T.
AU - Hardy, Chloe
AU - Mann, Christopher
AU - Boyle, Kirsten
AU - McArthur, David
AU - Dattani, Mit
AU - Moriarty, Cath
AU - Sagar, Peter
AU - Glyn, Tamara
AU - Frizelle, Frank
AU - Mohan, Helen
AU - Warrier, Satish
AU - Heriot, Alexander
AU - Fitzsimmons, Tracy
AU - Sammour, Tarik
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Author(s). Colorectal Disease published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland.
PY - 2025/3
Y1 - 2025/3
N2 - Aim: There are increasing numbers of long-term survivors following curative treatment for locally recurrent rectal cancer (LRRC); however, their experiences remain relatively underreported. The aim of this qualitative study was to identify the long-term survivorship issues relevant to these patients. Method: Adults who remained disease free >3 years following treatment for LRRC were invited to participate in an international multicentre study. Semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted either in person, via telephone or via Microsoft Teams and were analysed using a framework method of thematic analysis. Results: A total of 26 participants were recruited from 11 sites in seven countries. Sixteen (61.5%) participants were male, the median age was 70.5 (33.0–85.0) years, participants were a median of 5.0 (3.0–17.0) years posttreatment, most had undergone surgery for LRRC (n = 24, 92.3%), two participants received neoadjuvant chemo/radiation for LRRC with a complete response. Eight major survivorship themes were identified: (1) experience of long-term follow-up care, (2) unmet needs and areas for improvement, (3) long-term physical effects of cancer and treatment, (4) living with a stoma, urostomy or other urinary device, (5) long-term psychological impact, (6) impact on sexual function and intimate relationships, (7) impact on daily life and (8) feelings surrounding life now, adapting and the future. Conclusion: Participants experienced a wide range of long-term survivorship issues, reflecting the complexity of both LRRC and its treatment. Despite this, most had adapted well. Further work regarding survivorship care in LRRC is required to address the unmet needs and issues highlighted in this study, such as support regarding sexual function.
AB - Aim: There are increasing numbers of long-term survivors following curative treatment for locally recurrent rectal cancer (LRRC); however, their experiences remain relatively underreported. The aim of this qualitative study was to identify the long-term survivorship issues relevant to these patients. Method: Adults who remained disease free >3 years following treatment for LRRC were invited to participate in an international multicentre study. Semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted either in person, via telephone or via Microsoft Teams and were analysed using a framework method of thematic analysis. Results: A total of 26 participants were recruited from 11 sites in seven countries. Sixteen (61.5%) participants were male, the median age was 70.5 (33.0–85.0) years, participants were a median of 5.0 (3.0–17.0) years posttreatment, most had undergone surgery for LRRC (n = 24, 92.3%), two participants received neoadjuvant chemo/radiation for LRRC with a complete response. Eight major survivorship themes were identified: (1) experience of long-term follow-up care, (2) unmet needs and areas for improvement, (3) long-term physical effects of cancer and treatment, (4) living with a stoma, urostomy or other urinary device, (5) long-term psychological impact, (6) impact on sexual function and intimate relationships, (7) impact on daily life and (8) feelings surrounding life now, adapting and the future. Conclusion: Participants experienced a wide range of long-term survivorship issues, reflecting the complexity of both LRRC and its treatment. Despite this, most had adapted well. Further work regarding survivorship care in LRRC is required to address the unmet needs and issues highlighted in this study, such as support regarding sexual function.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105001163241&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/codi.70051
DO - 10.1111/codi.70051
M3 - Article
C2 - 40109230
AN - SCOPUS:105001163241
SN - 1462-8910
VL - 27
JO - Colorectal Disease
JF - Colorectal Disease
IS - 3
M1 - e70051
ER -
