Behavioral adjustments, supplements, and medications to manage bowel dysfunction in rectal cancer survivors.

Abstract

150 Background: Bowel dysfunction is a common long-term treatment effect that adversely impacts the quality of life (QOL) of rectal cancer (RC) survivors. Research suggests that self-care strategies such as behavioral adjustments and supplements/medications are used to achieve bowel control. Evidence describing the specific types of self-care strategies is lacking. The purpose of this study is to describe behavioral adjustments and supplement/medications use in long-term ( ≥ 5 years) RC survivors for managing bowel dysfunction. Methods: Long-term RC survivors with or without permanent ostomies who were enrolled in two Kaiser Permanente Regions completed a survey that included questions eliciting behavioral adjustments and supplements/medications used for bowel control. Written comments from the questions were coded for content and themes. The themes were reviewed and agreed upon by the research team. Responses mentioned < 9 times were combined into broader categories; those mentioned ≥ 9 times were coded separately. Results: A total of 577 RC survivors responded to the survey. 118 survivors (20.4%) responded to the behavioral adjustment question, while 248 (43%) responded to the helpful supplements/medications question. Behavioral adjustments included controlling meal portions (38.9%), eating meals at regular times (19.4%), not eating late or before bedtime (10.1%), and grazing (8.4%); they mitigated constipation, obstruction, bloating, frequency, urgency, and improved bowel predictability. Other behavioral adjustments include not eating before or after activities (5.9%), not eating (5.1%), snacking at regular times (2.5%), and eating less when traveling (1.6%). Helpful supplements/medications include anti-diarrheals (23.6%), dietary fiber supplements (16.6%), stool softeners (15.0%), laxatives (12.6%), antacid (5.6%), probiotics (5.0%), and opioids (3.6%). Conclusions: RC survivors used multiple behavioral adjustments and supplements/medications to achieve bowel control. The specific adjustments and strategies varied greatly. Findings will aid in developing personalized strategies to manage bowel symptoms during survivorship.