Mapping the home-based symptom management journey of lung cancer patients receiving combination therapy: A longitudinal qualitative study.

PURPOSE: To explore symptom management experiences and evolving information needs among lung cancer patients receiving combination therapy and to construct a patient symptom journey map that informs personalized and intelligent symptom management strategies.

METHODS

A prospective, longitudinal qualitative descriptive exploratory design was employed. Using purposive sampling, 27 lung cancer patients were recruited from two top-tier tertiary hospitals in Fuzhou and Putian, Fujian Province, China, between March and August 2024. Using purposive sampling, 27 lung cancer patients were recruited from two top-tier tertiary hospitals in Fuzhou and Putian, Fujian Province, China, between March and August 2024. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted at the end of each of the first four combination therapy intervals (T1-T4) to explore patients' symptom management experiences and information support needs. The data were analyzed via conventional content analysis. A patient symptom journey map was developed on the basis of the thematic findings from this longitudinal analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 94 interview datasets were collected across four time points, yielding four themes and fourteen categories. A symptom journey map for lung cancer patients was developed, encompassing five key dimensions: symptom experiences, symptom management challenges, opportunities, information support needs, and emotional experiences.

CONCLUSION

Lung cancer patients receiving combination therapy experience complex, dynamic symptom trajectories and have evolving unmet needs, highlighting the critical importance of dynamic, phase-specific symptom monitoring and tailored supportive care. The patient symptom journey map may help inform the development of timely and personalized supportive interventions addressing management challenges, information gaps, and psychological distress.