{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,25]],"date-time":"2026-08-25T08:24:10Z","timestamp":1787646250466,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":27,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]],"date-time":"2026-08-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787270400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]],"date-time":"2026-08-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787270400000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100012599","name":"Bethlehem Griffiths Research Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["BGRF2208"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["BGRF2208"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100012599","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Palliat Med"],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Unpaid caregivers play a crucial role in providing care for people with life-limiting illnesses such as cancer, yet their economic contributions are rarely recognised in economic evaluations, leaving caregivers to shoulder significant direct and indirect costs.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Aim:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>To explore the direct and indirect costs experienced by unpaid caregivers of people with cancer receiving palliative care.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Design:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A qualitative study underpinned by a social constructivist framework, reported in line with COREQ and RTARG guidelines. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with unpaid caregivers to capture their lived experiences of caregiving costs. Thematic analysis was employed.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Setting and Participants:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The study was conducted at a single tertiary hospital in Melbourne, Australia. Eleven caregivers (43\u201387\u2009years; mean 64\u2009years) participated, including spouses, children, and parents of cancer patients who had accessed palliative care.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Caregivers reported a wide range of direct costs, including food, equipment, medications, transportation, insurance, and home modifications. Indirect costs emerged as equally burdensome, including time spent on personal care, care-coordination, employment disruption, and loss of leisure. These burdens frequently extended beyond the caregiving period, undermining economic security and long-term wellbeing.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusions:<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Caregiving imposes substantial and enduring direct and indirect costs that are rarely measured or recognised in decisions made around health systems. Findings highlight the need for a validated tool to capture the full cost of caregiving, to guide equitable comprehensive economic evaluation.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1177\/02692163261478444","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,22]],"date-time":"2026-08-22T05:36:11Z","timestamp":1787376971000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["The economic costs of unpaid cancer caregiving: A qualitative study"],"prefix":"10.1177","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4266-7810","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Cara Madeleine","family":"Platts","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Melbourne Medical School, The University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia"},{"name":"St Vincent\u2019s Hospital (Melbourne), Fitzroy, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2139-0100","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anna","family":"Collins","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Melbourne Medical School, The University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia"},{"name":"St Vincent\u2019s Hospital (Melbourne), Fitzroy, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chris","family":"Schilling","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Melbourne Medical School, The University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia"},{"name":"St Vincent\u2019s Hospital (Melbourne), Fitzroy, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0830-4864","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Brian","family":"Le","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Parkville Integrated Palliative Care Service, Melbourne, VIC, Australia"},{"name":"The Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, The University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sue-Anne","family":"McLachlan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"St Vincent\u2019s Hospital (Melbourne), Fitzroy, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Louise","family":"Dillon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Consumer Representative, Melbourne, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Samantha","family":"Chandler","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Consumer Representative, Melbourne, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Terry","family":"Maher","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Consumer Representative, Melbourne, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1785-7054","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Clare","family":"Gardiner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The School of Nursing and Midwifery, The University of Sheffield, England, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3312-0645","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jennifer","family":"Philip","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Melbourne Medical School, The University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia"},{"name":"St Vincent\u2019s Hospital (Melbourne), Fitzroy, VIC, Australia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_3_2_2","volume-title":"Informal carers","author":"Australian Institute of Health and Welfare","year":"2023","unstructured":"Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. 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