Patient's experiences of coughing after lung cancer surgery: A multicenter qualitative study

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PURPOSE: Cough is one of the most common symptoms after lung cancer surgery, which seriously affects the quality of life. Little research has been conducted on patient's experiences of cough following lung surgery. This study aimed to elucidate the experience of coughing after lung cancer surgery from the patient's perspective regarding symptoms and their impacts on daily life, as well as triggers and dealing strategies. METHODS: Between June 2023 and July 2023, we conducted semi-structured interviews with patients from outpatient clinics of two hospitals who were pathologically diagnosed with lung cancer and experienced cough after surgery through convenience sampling. The interview recordings were transcribed and analyzed by two researchers. The traditional content analysis and thematic analysis were used to identify the common codes, subthemes, and themes. RESULTS: A total of 28 participants were interviewed. The mean age of the participants was 55.21 years (range: 36-75 years), and 21 participants were female. Most patients (75%) were interviewed within 6 months of surgery. We identified five themes (accompanying symptoms, incentives, effects, solution, and information sources) and 12 subthemes (local symptoms, systemic symptoms, personal factors, external factors, emotion, relationship with others, reduced quality of life, medical measures, nonmedical measures, no measures, relatives and friends, and the Internet). Patients with lung cancer may experience various cough symptoms after surgery, which a variety of internal and external factors can trigger. The coughing imposes a double burden on the physical and psychological due to the negative emotions it provokes. CONCLUSION: We generated a concept framework of cough after lung cancer surgery, providing a basis for further development of measurement tools from the patients' perspective. The lack of knowledge related to coughing highlights the need for adequate and timely health education and professional medical care.

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