The impact of uncertainty, personal feelings and hospital experiences on care received by oncology patients: a preliminary analysis

During the last years, the Quality of Life (QoL) has become a relevant topic for researchers and social policy makers, who try to develop programs aimed at maintaining patients’ satisfaction. This became imperative for oncology patients, for which the illness state is unavoidably accompanied by changes in life style that may be difficult to manage.Oncology patients’ personal experiences and expectations are crucial factors for a qualitatively adequate assistance.This paper is part of a wider research, aimed at assessing the impact of uncertainty, anxiety and depression and personal experiences, while accessing the health services, on a sample of cancer patients. Data and information have been collected in more than one oncology centre, in two different countries, Italy and Bulgaria. In a wider perspective, this may allow a comparison between the impact of two different health systems too.