Raising the unheard voices of cancer caregivers in Asia: Comparative and sociodemographic analysis on quality of life

BackgroundAs global cancer cases increase exponentially, the number of caregivers subsequently increases to support patients. Despite being indispensable, the available resource was reserved mainly for patients, undermining the importance of caregivers who also share the struggle and burden. The chronic amount of stress and responsibility that caregivers face leads to impairment of quality of life (QOL). Further, most research that assesses the QOL is mainly conducted in the developed countries with robust palliative care. This comparative study aims to map and explore the status quo of QOL levels from caregivers of cancer patients in Asia. In addition, to investigate the correlation of QOL impairments in caregivers with sociodemographic factors.MethodsA comprehensive systematic review of the literature was performed through databases with the keywords “cancer�, “caregiver�,� quality of life�, and “Asia� spans from 2004-2024. 371 articles that satisfy eligible criteria were retrieved. A total of 1271 family caregivers for cancer patients who had taken outpatient treatment, finished sociodemographic, and the Caregiver Quality of Life Index-Cancer (CQOLC) survey were included. Gathered CQOLC total scores from 12 countries including Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Turkey, Iran, Jordanian, India, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Japan, and Saudi Arabia dataset, were compared and analyzed for their correlation with sociodemographic factors.ResultsDifferent distributions of total scores of CQOLC in 12 Asia countries observed with higher CQOLC total scores were scored within the developed countries with mature palliative care systems. Further, varying caregiver determinants including different sociodemographic characteristics could produce impaired QOL such as male gender, parental relationships, certain ethnicity, and late-stage cancer.ConclusionsDespite sharing cultural context and family-based caregivers, uneven QOL distribution was observed across Asian countries. This study also highlights the potential areas to be improved. Additionally, acknowledging the diversity of values, culture, and socio-demographics significantly helps in creating more optimal interventions to support caregivers.Legal entity responsible for the studyThe authors.FundingHas not received any funding.DisclosureAll authors have declared no conflicts of interest.