Grant: Knowledge Synthesis Grant

Colorectal cancers (CRCs) are the second leading cause of cancer deaths in Canada yet also have one of the highest survival rates. When diagnosed early, patients' five year survival may be close to 90%. BC's new pilot screening program for colorectal cancers will lead to more people being diagnosed early, receiving treatment and experiencing long-term survivorship.As health care providers, we have heard patients' stories about frustrations with the information or lack of information they receive during their care and treatment. We recognize that treatment for people with CRCs requires the services of multiple health care professionals at distinguishable points in time (eg. diagnosis, treatment and survivorship)and information can be fragmented and inconsistent - who should be providing what information and when? Understanding cancer patients' information needs is seen as the crucial first step in designing interventions to best meet the needs of cancer patients. To identify specific information needs for people with CRCs, we propose a scoping review guided by the question: what does the literature tell us about the information provided by health are professionals and needed by people with colorectal cancers across the cancer care continuum? The objectives of this scoping review are to: a) identify current literature that reports on and addresses the information needs of people with colorectal cancer population, b)identify and summarize the discrepancies in this literature, c)identify gaps in the literature that will point to future research and d)distribute findings in order to enhance awareness among health care professionals, decision makers and patients.This study will contribute to understanding the dynamic nature of the information needs of people with CRCs across their cancer care continuum.Integrated knowledge translation will provide a foundation for future evidence-based intervention studies in order to improve care for this patient population.