Impact of the Therapeutic Alliance on Reduction of Disparities in Latino End-of-Life Cancer Care

The purpose of the study is to examine perceptions, barriers, and facilitators of a therapeutic alliance (TA) between Latino/a advanced cancer patients and their oncologists. We aim to qualitatively explore patient and oncologist perceptions of TA, barriers and facilitators of TA, and the perceived influence of Latino/a ethnicity on TA via in-depth interviews with oncologists (N=4) and focus groups with patients (N=10 patients). We hypothesize that we will be able to better understand the TA between Latino/a advanced cancer patients and their oncologists through the conduct of these focus groups and structured interviews .

Sex

All

Minimum age

21 Years

Inclusion criteria:

1. identifying as ethnically Latino/a;
2. locally advanced or metastatic cancer (gynecologic, lung, gastrointestinal, colorectal) and have experienced disease progression on at least first-line chemotherapy and
3. ability to provide informed consent.

Patient exclusion criteria include:

1. not fluent in English or Spanish;
2. severely cognitively impaired \[44\];
3. too ill or weak to participate in a focus group ;
4. age under 21; and
5. patients deemed inappropriate for the study by their treating oncologist.