Perceived Levels of Supportive Care Needs of the Patients with Oral Cancer in a Metropolitan City in South India – A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire-Based Study L. Surya Chandra Varma, Swathi Jahagirdar 1 , Md Shakeel Anjum 2 , P. Parthasarathi Reddy 3 , K.V. N. R. Pratap 4 , V. Siva Kalyan Reddy 5 Department of Public Health Dentistry, Senior Lecturer, Mamata Dental College, Khammam, 1 Department of Oral Pathology, Senior Resident, Osmania Dental College, Hyderabad, 2 Department of Public Health Dentistry, Professor, Sri Sai College of Dental Surgery, Vikarabad, 3 Department of Public Health Dentistry, Professor and Head, Sri Sai College of Dental Surgery, Vikarabad, 4 Department of Public Health Dentistry, Mamata Dental College, Khammam, 5 Department of Public Health Dentistry, Reader, Mamata Dental College, Khammam, Telangana, India Abstract Introduction: The patients with cancer experience a range of challenges that can be physical, mental, and psychological. Hence, proper supportive care needs should be provided to the patients with oral cancer during the postoperative period, which can have a great impact on them and their family caregivers. Aim: To assess the perceived levels of supportive care needs, namely psychological, interpersonal communication, patient support, health information, and physical needs, of the patients with oral cancer in a metropolitan city. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted. One hundred and twenty patients were recruited from various cancer hospitals’ inpatient wards in the city of Hyderabad. A questionnaire was used to assess the patients’ needs, including the Karnofsky’s Performance Status Index and Cancer Needs Questionnaire Short Form. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Regression analysis was performed to find the predictive factors of various needs domains of the patients, and P 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: In general, the patients reported the highest level of supportive care needs in the “Psychological” domain among six needs domains, followed by interpersonal communication needs, patient support needs, health information needs, and physical needs. Factors significantly related to those supportive care needs across six domains were stage of the cancer when admitted, past treatment underwent, occupation, location of the cancer, duration of the treatment, and undergoing problems during the treatment. Conclusion: Needs that were considered to be more important by the patients were the psychological needs and interpersonal communication needs, especially in the period within which they are being treated and when undergoing tests to determine the stage of the cancer. Routine screening for psychological and physical distress should become a first step in the assessment of the psychosocial needs of people receiving inpatient treatment for the cancer. Keywords: Cancer, needs, oral cavity, patients, psychological INTRODUCTION Cancer is the second most common cause of morbidity and mortality in the world today after cardiovascular problems. Six million people die due to cancer every year, two-third of which occurs in developing countries such as India. [1] In south Asia, oral cancers account for up to 40% of all cancers. Oropharyngeal cancer is a significant part of the global burden of cancer. [2] The Indian subcontinent accounts for one-third of the world burden. Head and neck cancers account for one-fourth of all cancers in Indian males. [2] In the West, the cancer of the tongue and floor of the mouth is common, whereas in the Indian subcontinent, the cancers of the gingival and the buccal mucosa are common due to placement of tobacco quid in the oral cavity. This cancer of the gingivo-buccal complex is termed as Indian oral cancer (Oral Cancer Prevention and Research Foundation, India). [1] The patients with cancer experience a range of challenges that can encompass psychological distress, difficulties communicating Address for correspondence: Dr. Lakkaras Surya Chandra Varma, Senior Lecturer, Department of Public Health Dentistry, Mamata Dental College, Khammam - 507 002, Telangana, India. E-mail: varma.surya999@gmail.com This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License, which allows others to remix, tweak, and build upon the work noncommercially, as long as the author is credited and the new creations are licensed under the identical terms. For reprints contact: reprints@medknow.com How to cite this article: Varma LS, Jahagirdar S, Anjum MS, Reddy PP, Pratap K, Reddy VS. Perceived Levels of Supportive Care Needs of the Patients with Oral Cancer in a Metropolitan City in South India – A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire-Based Study. J Indian Assoc Public Health Dent 2017;15:78-83. Access this article online Quick Response Code: Website: www.jiaphd.org DOI: 10.4103/2319-5932.201933 Original Article 78 © 2017 Journal of Indian Association of Public Health Dentistry | Published by Wolters Kluwer - Medknow [Downloaded free from http://www.jiaphd.org on Tuesday, March 14, 2017, IP: 117.204.65.65]