The impact of a stoma on the quality of life of persons with colorectal cancer

Abstract

Objectives: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a type of cancer that affects the colon or rectum, and it is the third most common cancer worldwide. The treatment for CRC depends on the cancer's location and stage, and includes surgery, neo-adjuvant chemotherapy and radiation therapy. In complicated CRC cases, a stoma can be created. This study aims to determine whether the QoL influences CRC patients with a stoma than without stoma patients. For this purpose, the following PICO question was formed: In patients with colorectal cancer, does having a stoma influence the quality of life compared to not having a stoma? The PICO elements are Patient with colorectal cancer (P), Permanent stoma (I), Other treatment which does not require a permanent stoma or had a temporary stoma (C) and Influence on the QoL (O). Method: A methodological search was conducted through reliable databases, which are: Hybrid Discovery (HyDi), EBSCOhost, PubMed, and Google Scholar. An inclusion and exclusion criteria were created to retrieve the most relevant articles. The inclusion criteria included CRC patients with or without/temporary stoma, and in English language. While exclusion criteria included non-surgical treatment, comparing the surgeries, and published prior 2006. The search led to five studies including one systematic review and four observational studies which were critically appraised by the CASP tool. Results and conclusion: The chosen articles had divergent views. It was concluded that CRC patients with a stoma do not have a worse influence on the QoL than those without stoma patients. However, it is recommended that more research on QoL in CRC patients who receive any treatment especially in view of the low response rate. Further recommendations are psychotherapist and trained dietician with the stoma services team and a cancer-specific education programme since it conveys information and can influence QoL. When comparing the local target population to those in the retrieved studies, it was suggested that the findings could be applicable if social aspects, logistics, and physical and mental health were identified.