Effectiveness of nursing interventions based on lung cancer trajectory: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Aim(s): To evaluate the effectiveness of nursing interventions based on the lung cancer trajectory. Background: The transition to the chronic state of lung cancer requires a shift in the management paradigm. Nurses are crucial in managing the health of patients with lung cancer through various services. Therefore, rigorous research is required to understand and provide evidence on the influence of nursing interventions. Sources of evidence: We systematically selected studies on nursing interventions for patients with lung cancer published from 2000 to 2022 based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. A systematic review was conducted according to the Cochrane Handbook and PRIMA 2020 guidelines, and a meta-analysis was performed. The risk of bias in the included studies was evaluated using ROB 2.0. Results: In this study, lung cancer trajectories were classified into diagnosis, treatment, survival, and end-of-life care based on a literature review. A meta-analysis of 47 nursing intervention studies involving 4852 patients confirmed the large effectiveness in significantly improving health-related quality of life, emotional symptoms, self-care behaviors, adjustment, satisfaction, health resource use, cost-effectiveness, and cancer symptoms. Only one study has been conducted on the end-of-life trajectory, highlighting the need for more nursing intervention research in this area. Conclusions: Recent nursing experimental studies involving patients with lung cancer show small, large, and medium effect sizes during the diagnosis, treatment, and survival trajectories, respectively. Implications for nursing practice and research: A tailored nursing plan based on the disease trajectory is essential. Stakeholders should consider allocating resources to develop and strengthen nursing interventions, particularly at the diagnostic and end-of-life trajectories.