Gunn KM, Weeks M, Spronk KJJ, Fletcher C, Wilson C. Caring for someone with cancer in rural Australia. Support Care Cancer. 2022 Feb 14. doi: 10.1007/s00520-022-06857-2.
Contact: Kate Gunn

This study explores the experiences of people caring for someone with cancer, while living in rural Australia, and the impact of the cancer-caring role on their well-being.

Eighteen adults in regional or remote ('rural') Australia who cared for a person with cancer took part in semi-structured telephone interviews.

It was concluded that Rural cancer carers' roles can be made easier by improving health systems and coordination to ease the burden of travel, providing information about available support and what to expect throughout cancer treatment that is relevant to the rural context, and increasing access to quality health, community, and support services, including palliative care, in rural areas.

More training on the specific needs of rural patients and their carers is needed for urban health care professionals. Peer support groups may have particular value for cancer carers in rural settings, where there are known to be multiple barriers to accessing professional sources of psychosocial support.

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