Lymphomas, a group of hematologic cancers, pose a significant health challenge due to their diverse clinical, genetic, and pathological characteristics. Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma [NHL] accounts for approximately 41% of the entire hematologic cancer population.1 Although the incidence rate of NHL is low, symptom management of patients is negatively affected by the high number of diseases and treatment-related symptoms.2,3 In the treatment of lymphoma, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or hematopoietic stem cell transplantation are performed according to the stage of the disease.4,5 Symptoms such as anemia, infection, nausea, vomiting, mucositis, anorexia, weakness, fatigue, pain, constipation, and peripheral neuropathy may occur due to chemotherapy treatment.6,7 Patients with NHL often receive chemotherapy treatment on an outpatient basis and go home and have to manage the most important symptoms of chemotherapy at home without the direct support of a healthcare Professional.8,9 Therefore, cancer patients and their families need to be supported in symptom management not only in the hospital but also at home.9,10

Symptoms experienced by lymphoma patients reduce the quality of life (QoL) by negatively affecting daily life activities, family and social relationships, and physical performance.11 It has been observed that disease and symptom burden negatively affect QoL in patients with NHL, and unplanned hospital admissions are high due to symptoms such as symptom severity and anxiety.12,13 Given the rising survival rates, accessible interventions that alleviate the burden on healthcare services should be prioritized.14,15 Self-management interventions can effectively increase patient participation in care services, reduce the burden on health services, and strengthen the role of patients.16,17 In patients with NHL, web-based technologies seem to be suitable for self-management initiatives because of their advantages, such as easy access, reaching a large number of patients, and providing more protection from nosocomial infections than face-to-face interventions.11,18 Moreover, considering the variability of symptoms experienced, the most appropriate approach to increase symptom self-management is to provide individualized, real-time, and actionable information.19,20 Providing direct information to patients with a decision support system (DSS) can increase their ability to self-manage symptoms.21,22

The benefits of DSS include providing information for specific patient groups, providing reminders for preventive care and warnings about potentially dangerous situations, increasing efficiency and patient satisfaction, and providing cost-effectiveness.23 In addition, DSS is used in areas such as providing valid and reliable information, transmitting messages, providing reference to users, saving users' time, integrating with clinical workflows, increasing system response and speed, developing active and passive warning mechanisms, and ensuring the accurate management of information.24,25

Website applications that include DSS for symptom self-management contribute to patients' symptom management, comprehensive treatment programs, and coordination of medication plans.14,26 DSS enables patients with NHL to test alternative solutions in the problem-solving process, review data, and access best practices that can serve as a reference. In addition, DSS encourages patients with NHL to continue learning, ensuring that they can receive comprehensive care and update their knowledge.27

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the LympCARE Intervention Protocol on symptom management, QoL, and unplanned hospital admissions in patients with NHL. It was hypothesized that patients with NHL who used the symptom self-management protocol would have lower symptom frequency, lower symptom severity, higher QoL, and a lower frequency of unplanned hospital admissions than the active control group.