Scottish Cancer Patient Experience Survey 2015/16

Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy

Going through chemotherapy and radiotherapy can be a very difficult experience. To help them prepare, patients, families and carers should be offered all the information they need, in a format they can understand. They should also be kept informed of how the treatment is progressing if they want this.

Clarity of communication is crucial given the many different types of chemotherapy drugs and types of radiotherapy, the rate at which new drugs and techniques emerge, and the many possible side effects that patients can experience, both during the actual course of treatment and in the future.

Radiotherapy

Around half of survey respondents (49%) had received radiotherapy treatment (Figure 31).

Figure 31: Has patient received radiotherapy treatment?

The patients that had received radiotherapy were asked:

• whether they had all the information they needed beforehand about their radiotherapy treatment; and
• whether once they had started their treatment, they were given enough information about whether their radiotherapy was working in a way they could understand.

Patients were noticeably more positive about having all of the information they required beforehand (81% responding 'yes, completely') than they were about getting enough information on whether the treatment was working (only 54% responding 'yes, completely') (Table 41).

Table 41: Information about radiotherapy treatment

Whilst there was no influence from tumour group on the question regarding having information beforehand, responses did vary on the question regarding information on whether the radiotherapy treatment was working once it had started.

Breast tumour patients were statistically less positive (48%) than the all-cancer average. Patients with brain / central nervous system (74%) and prostate tumours (62%) were more positive than the all-cancer average (Figure 32).

Figure 32: % receiving enough information about whether radiotherapy was working, by tumour group

Chemotherapy

As with radiotherapy, around half of survey respondents (48%) had received chemotherapy treatment (Figure 33).

Figure 33: Has patient had chemotherapy treatment?

The patients that had received chemotherapy were also asked:

• whether they had all the information they needed beforehand about their chemotherapy treatment; and
• whether once they had started their treatment, they were given enough information about whether their chemotherapy was working in a way they could understand.

Results showed a similar pattern to the radiotherapy questions. Patients were more positive about receiving the required information before their chemotherapy treatment (77% 'yes, completely') than they were about receiving information on whether the treatment working once it had started (62% 'yes, completely')
(Table 42).

Table 42: Information about chemotherapy treatment

There was no effect of tumour group on the question regarding information beforehand. However, responses did vary on the question regarding information on whether the chemotherapy treatment was working once it had started.

Patients with breast tumours (53%) were statistically below the all-cancer average in reporting that they had received this information in a way they could understand. Patients with urological (76%) and haematological tumours (75%) were statistically above average (Figure 34).

Figure 34: % receiving enough information about whether radiotherapy was working