Presentation and Management of Orbito-Ocular Malignancies in a Tertiary Institution in Southwest Nigeria.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to review the management of orbito-ocular malignancies in the Departments of Radiotherapy and Ophthalmology, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, between January 1997 and December 2011 in comparison to previous and recent studies globally. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of orbito-ocular malignancies seen at the Departments of Radiotherapy and Ophthalmology, Lagos University Teaching Hospital from 1997 to 2011. Case files and treatment cards were retrieved through the Medical Records department and the information required was extracted with the aid of a data extraction form. Results: A total of 98 cases with histologically confirmed orbito-ocular malignancies seen during the 15-year study period were analysed. Retinoblastoma (51 [52.0%]) was the most common orbito-ocular malignancies seen in children, whereas squamous cell carcinoma of the conjunctiva (25 [25.5%]) was the most common in adults. Seventeen (17%) patients had a combination of radiotherapy, surgery, and chemotherapy. Thirty (33%) had enucleation, whereas 33 (36%) had exenteration. Thirty-six patients had chemotherapy, whereas 44 patients benefited from radiotherapy, and radical treatment was offered to 24 patients. Total radical treatment dose was 35-65 Gy in 20-35 fractions over 4-7 weeks. Most of the patients (84 [85.7%]) were lost to follow up. Five (5.1%) died from disease progression and four (4.1%) are still alive and on regular follow-up. Conclusion: This study showed that the use of multimodality treatment was implemented but did not improve survival because the majority of patients presented late. The need for a collaborative effort in early detection and prompt referral for treatment of cancer cases cannot be overemphasised.

Formal Assessment of Teamwork Among Cancer Health Care Professionals in Three Large Tertiary Centers in Nigeria.

PURPOSE: There are strategies to bring quality cancer care to underserved patients, but poor use of the principles of teamwork is a major barrier to achieving quality services. The intent of this study was to assess teamwork as perceived by health care workers caring for patients with cancer. METHODS: We conducted a survey among health care professionals in cancer care at 3 tertiary centers in southwestern Nigeria from July to November 2016. Respondents rated teamwork using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire; we focused on the teamwork climate subscale comparing health care providers and institutions using analysis of variance and on collaboration using logistic regression. RESULTS: Three hundred seventy-three professionals completed the survey: 177 physicians (47%), 51 nurses (14%), 21 pharmacists (6%), 31 laboratory technicians (8%), and 88 others (24%); 5 (1%) participants had missing professional information. The average teamwork climate score across all professionals in the study was 70.5 (SD = 24.2). Pharmacists rated the teamwork climate the lowest, with a mean score of 63.9 (SD = 29.5); nurses and laboratory technicians rated teamwork higher, with means of 74.5 (SD = 21.7) and 74.2 (SD = 27.1), respectively; and physicians rated teamwork 66.0 (SD = 23.6). Collaboration with other health care providers was reported as poorer by physicians compared with nurses and pharmacists. CONCLUSION: Although overall teamwork scores were consistent with ambulatory studies in the United States, important subgroup variations provide targets for intervention. Physicians rated collaboration as poor both intra- and interprofessionally. Pharmacists rated interprofessional teamwork with nurses as poor. Efforts to transform cancer care must focus on building trust among the key stakeholders. This is critical in low-resource settings, which must maximize the use of limited resources to improve patient outcomes.

Prevalence and Correlates of Unmet Supportive Needs of Nigerian Patients With Cancer.

PURPOSE: Diagnosis and treatment of cancer are associated with significant psychological distress, and patients face a broad range of challenges that create a vacuum of unmet needs felt by patients, such as a loss of personal control and frustration. The aim of the current study was to determine the magnitude, distribution, and correlates of unmet needs in Nigerian patients with cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Using a descriptive cross-sectional approach, we assessed 205 patients with cancer who attended oncology outpatient clinics at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Eligible patients were administered the Supportive Care Needs Survey (SCNS) -Short Form 34 with a focus on five domains of need: psychological, health system and information, physical and daily living, patient care and support, and sexuality. RESULTS: Mean age was 47.4 ± 12.3 years and patients were predominantly female (96.6%). The most common diagnosis was breast cancer (92.2%), and mean duration since diagnosis was 20.9 ± 21.9 months for all patients. Mean SCNS score was 83.9 ± 24.8 and at least 46% of participants indicated unmet needs in 15 items of the SCNS. The most frequent unattended needs were related to the health information (53.4%), physical and daily living (49.4%), psychological (48.5%), sexuality, and patient care and support domains. None of the factors considered-age, sex marital status, family type, educational attainment, employment status, economic status, the presence of financial support, social support, and cancer type-was significantly predictive of unmet needs in these patients (P > .05). CONCLUSION: Nigerian patients with cancer experience considerable levels of unmet needs. These needs require urgent and long-term interventions to help patients achieve increased care satisfaction and a better quality of life.