O Mundo da Saúde (Apr 2020)
Profile of oncology patient care at a regional emergency hospital reference unit in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Abstract
In the context of oncological disease, the patient’s hospitalization needs to be optimized, aiming to alleviate the suffering of patients and family members. It is necessary to know the profile of the patients who access the service, mainly by emergency services. The aim of the study was to identify the profile of patients undergoing cancer treatment and the emergencies that affect them. This was a quantitative, retrospective, longitudinal, observational cohort study, analyzing data from medical records and hospital cancer records in 2017. 1635 patients were included, predominantly aged between 60 to 69 (27.3%) years, 852 (52.1 %) were male, 1542 (94.1%) of were white, 463 (28.3%) had a family history of cancer, and there was a median of 29 days to start post-diagnosis treatment. The typology with the highest incidence was other malignant neoplasms of the skin (n=538; 32.9%), and the location of the first metastasis in the liver (n=47; 2.8%). The patients admitted via emergency services were separated, resulting in 450 (27.5%) patients, with a mean age of 60.5 years, 240 (53.3%) were males and 239 (53.1%) were smokers and ex-smokers. 446 (99.11%) patients were admitted and four (0.88%) were referred to the outpatient clinic. Of the hospitalized patients, 337 (74.90%) were discharged from the hospital and 113 (25.10%) died. Abdominal pain appeared in 111 (24.6%) and tumor lysis syndrome was the main oncological emergency in 182 (40.4%) cases. Knowing the profile of cancer patients and their emergencies contribute to the understanding of the risks of the clinical manifestation, helping health professionals and improving the care provided.
