Abdullah, N. M. A.

Cancer is a chronic and life-threatening disease that causes complications to the patients diagnosed with it as well as to those who were taking care of them; i.e. the caregivers who normally are family members of the patient. Cancer caregivers experience burden and stress during the period of caregiving which contributes to their quality of life (QOL). However, there is scarce literature on the QOL of gastrointestinal cancer caregivers in the local population.

Purpose: Gastrointestinal (GI) cancer has emerged as a major health problem. Cancer patients receive informal care from their families beyond formal care. There has been little evidence showing how the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of the caregivers differs from that of the GI patients in Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in three referral hospitals in Malaysia.