Jason Alcorn
Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK
Title: An exploration of BCG treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer: A mixed methods approach
Biography
Biography: Jason Alcorn
Abstract
Since the turn of the 20th century, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) has been in and out of favor. However, only a small proportion of patients, as low as 16%, complete what is seen as the preferred treatment option. The treatment itself presents issues, which are reported in the literature as being side effects, which can be from mild to severe and local to systemic. An integrative-based literature review was conducted to generate a broad overview of the existing knowledge for BCG treatment. A significant number of articles were identified. The major conclusion from the literature review is that BCG treatment, when given through an induction and maintenance regime, significantly reduces the risk of progression and recurrence, but can cause withdrawal of over 80%. This could be through side effects that the patient and the nurse need to be aware of. This review also highlighted that there is a lack of research from the UK and that there is a paucity of research showing why patients withdraw from BCG treatment. This formed the basis of a mixed methods study, which has been carried out in a large district general hospital, to explore the influences that cause patients to withdraw from BCG treatment. The conclusion is that there are multiple factors that cause patients to withdraw from BCG treatment e.g. physical, psychological (including emotional), age and the social impact, that nurses need to be aware of and to minimize to keep patients on the preferred treatment.