Identifying Barriers to Advocacy Among Patients With Lung Cancer: The Role of Stigma-Related Interpersonal Constraint.
Sarah N Price, Megan Shen, Maureen Rigney and 2 others
PMID 36413734WHAT IT FOUND
Patients with lung cancer who were uncomfortable disclosing their diagnosis reported less advocacy, including wanting to help others and sharing information.
Other stigma aspects were not linked to advocacy.
Key findings
01Patients who reported more constrained disclosure about their lung cancer diagnosis reported less advocacy.
02Perceived stigma and internalized stigma were not associated with advocacy.
03Advocacy scores averaged 7.25 on a 3 to 15 scale.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The survey was cross-sectional, so it cannot show whether stigma reduced advocacy or lower advocacy increased stigma. Advocacy was measured with a new three-item scale, which may not capture the many ways patients advocate. The final model explained only 11% of the variance in advocacy scores, so other unmeasured factors likely matter. The sample underrepresented men, patients with current tobacco use, and patients from underserved racial and ethnic backgrounds. Patients were enrolled only if they were currently receiving treatment or had had treatment within the past 12 months, so it may miss advocates who become active later. Participants were people willing to join a study, so their stigma may be lower and advocacy higher than in patients who do not participate. The study sample size was not determined before the analysis.
Declared interests
The paper lists N.I.H. and non-U.S. government research support, but no author conflict-of-interest declaration is given.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that stigma caused patients with lung cancer to avoid advocacy. The study measured associations at one time point and did not test whether stigma reduced advocacy.