Poster Presentation 2025 National Cancer Survivorship Conference

“I'm not the one with cancer but it's affecting me just as much”: A qualitative study of rural caregivers’ experiences seeking and accessing support for their health and wellbeing while caring for someone with cancer  (#77)

Lizzy Johnston 1 2 3 , Katelyn Collins 1 4 , Jazmin Vicario 1 , Chris Sibthorpe 1 , Belinda Goodwin 1 5 6
  1. Cancer Council Queensland, Fortitude Valley, QLD, Australia
  2. School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, QLD, Australia
  3. Population Health Program, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Herston, QLD, Australia
  4. School of Psychology and Wellbeing, University of Southern Queensland, Springfield, QLD, Australia
  5. Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Springfield, QLD, Australia
  6. School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Background: Family and friends provide essential support to people with cancer but often report feeling unsupported themselves. While support from an informal caregiver has been linked to improved physical, emotional, and functional outcomes for cancer survivors, caregivers’ own health and wellbeing is often compromised, especially for those living outside of major cities. This study investigated rural caregivers’ experiences seeking support for their health and wellbeing while caring for someone with cancer.

Methods: Through semi-structured interviews, 20 caregivers living in rural Australia described their experiences seeking and accessing support for themselves, including what support was, or would have been, helpful. Interview transcripts were analysed using content analysis to identify the type and source of support sought and what aspects of the support were helpful or unhelpful.

Results: Health and wellbeing support was sought across medical and psychosocial domains. Caregivers’ responses reflected both facilitators and barriers to seeking support and benefits and challenges of accessing support. Facilitators to support-seeking included telehealth options and being involved in patient care discussions, as this helped caregivers know what to expect in their role. Barriers to support-seeking included isolation from family and friends while travelling for their loved one's treatment and caregivers’ needs for support not being acknowledged or understood by medical staff or social networks. Benefits of accessing support included help with managing daily responsibilities and being linked with additional support services they were not aware of. Challenges included delays in receiving support, inadequate duration of support, and lack of lived experience among care providers.

Conclusions: To optimise rural caregivers’ access to support for their health and wellbeing, support services should be prompt and flexible in delivery, simple to navigate, integrated with patient care, improve caregivers’ coping ability, provide access to additional supports, and reduce caregiver burden.