Sociability of male cancer patients with stoma: a qualitative metasynthesis.
João Vitor Antunes Lins Dos Santos, Ariana Luiza Rabelo, Vander Monteiro da Conceição and 3 others
PMID 41370601WHAT IT FOUND
Men with cancer-related stomas described social isolation because pouch management, odor, leakage, body image, and lack of nearby toilets made public activities difficult.
They hid difficulties from family and used clothing, fasting, and bathroom planning to cope.
Key findings
01The synthesis identified four themes: sexual performance challenges; physical and emotional impacts with self-esteem and social isolation; social limitations and coping strategies; and changed behavior within families.
02Public pouch management restricted eating out and attending events; men used extra clothes, bathroom planning, and fasting to cope.
03Sexual activity was affected by pain, erectile dysfunction, odor and gas discomfort, fear of leakage, and shame; men also often hid stoma difficulties from family.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
This is a qualitative metasynthesis, so it describes men's experiences rather than testing whether any care approach works. Only six qualitative studies were included, so the themes may not cover all men with cancer-related stomas. The search was limited to English, Portuguese, and Spanish articles and to specific databases, so relevant studies in other languages or sources may have been missed. Only full-text articles were included, which may have excluded relevant studies. Brazilian samples predominated, so the findings may not apply to men in other regions, especially Eastern contexts. Studies that included both men and women were excluded, and evidence items that did not address the research question were excluded.
Declared interests
This work was supported by CAPES and the Federal University of Fronteira Sul. The supplied text does not state a conflict of interest declaration.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the four themes as evidence that a particular stoma care programme improves sociability. The review synthesizes men's reported experiences from six qualitative studies, not tested interventions or patient outcomes.