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. 2025 Dec;18(1):2485742.
doi: 10.1080/16549716.2025.2485742. Epub 2025 Apr 10.

The benefits, barriers, and specific needs of palliative care for adults with cancer in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review

Fawziyyah Usman Sadiq  1   2 , Yu-Lyu Yeh  1 , Hung-En Liao  1 , Muhammad Alwi Eka Pranata  1   3 , Sneha Patnaik  1 , Yin-Hwa Shih  1
Affiliations

The benefits, barriers, and specific needs of palliative care for adults with cancer in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review

Fawziyyah Usman Sadiq et al. Glob Health Action. 2025 Dec.

Abstract

People living in low - and middle-income countries are less likely to receive palliative care. Early delivery of palliative care reduces unnecessary hospital admissions and improves patients' and their families' quality of life. This systematic review has compiled and scrutinized adult cancer patients' benefits, barriers, and specific palliative care needs in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to provide stakeholders with vital information that can improve the support and care provided to this expanding patient population. A systematic literature search was conducted using PubMed, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Embase, Medline, and ProQuest under the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Studies included in the review focused on the utilization of palliative care among adult cancer patients in sub-Saharan Africa. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Critical Appraisal tools assessed study quality. This review synthesized findings from 16 studies and highlights that access to palliative care improves cancer patients' quality of life, satisfaction, and outlook on diagnosis. However, limited knowledge, financial constraints, and systemic obstacles impede access. Patients' needs were categorized into four themes: physical comfort, psychosocial support, spiritual well-being, and socioeconomic assistance. Palliative care improves adult cancer patients' quality of life in sub-Saharan Africa, but barriers hinder access. To address the challenges and meet patients' needs, enhancing literacy about palliative care, providing financial support, and implementing structured and sustainable palliative care models are essential for strengthening services and improving regional healthcare.

Keywords: Supportive care; adult patients; low resource settings; oncology; quality of life.

Plain language summary

Main findings: Enhancing literacy about palliative care, providing financial support and implementing structured and sustainable palliative care models are essential for strengthening palliative care services and improving regional healthcare.Added knowledge: Our review explores the potential of adopting Swedish palliative care guides, which have positively impacted patient outcomes in palliative care, to strengthen palliative care in sub-Saharan Africa, where such frameworks have not yet been widely implemented.Global health impact on policy and action: This paper advocates for bold global health policy actions to enhance palliative care for cancer patients, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, through raising awareness, securing funding, integrating care into national cancer strategies, and fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration to overcome barriers, address unmet needs, and promote sustainable, equitable health outcomes globally.

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Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
PRISMA flow diagram illustrating the systematic literature search and selection process.
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