The Good Day Project

What is a good day in the life of a person surviving one of the less survivable cancers? 

Project timeline: 

March 3, 2025 – March 2, 2026 

Study status: 

Active. Conducting interviews. 

Background: 

Cancers of the lung, liver, brain, oesophagus, pancreas and stomach have been called ‘less survivable’. Despite accounting for 22% of all new cases and 40% of all cancer deaths in Europe, these six cancers still suffer from low awareness amongst the public and health providers. Best supportive care is dependent on understanding how patients with these cancers cope with the challenges placed by cancer and how they maintain a good quality of life.  

Aim and Objectives: 

This study aims to understand what ‘a good day’ is in the life of a patient surviving one of the less survivable cancers. 

We want to better understand: 

• What day-to-day activities, experiences and actions contribute to ‘a good day’. 

• Prerequisites and priorities for ‘a good day’. 

• What challenges and experiences might turn a good day into ‘a bad day’. 

• Changes in meaning attributed to a good/bad day from diagnosis to study participation. 

Impact: 

We will use results from this project to educate health professionals and advocate about how best supportive care should look like for this population. We will discuss ways to refocus care to target and support positive life experiences that can improve the wellbeing of people affected by cancer. We will work closely with patient organisations in Europe to maximise the impact of this work. 

How is the study done? 

One interview in the form of a conversation with the researcher. The interview may last 45-60 minutes and can be done either online or over the phone. The interview can be done in language. 

Who can take part: 

People can take part in this study if they are older than 18 and have been diagnosed with one of these cancers: lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic or stomach cancer. They may live anywhere in Europe. They won’t have to speak English to take part in the interview. 

If you think you know someone who meets the criteria, please contact research.assistant@cancernurse.eu for more information. 

How many do we need?

 Up to 40 individuals, that is up to 6-7 individuals per cancer type, with interviews conducted in any language.  


Project team:  


Dr Grigorios Kotronoulas

University of Glasgow, UK


Dr Celia Diez de los Rios de la Serna

EONS, Belgium/University of Glasgow, UK 


Dr Amanda Drury

University College Dublin, Ireland


Dr Wendy H Oldenmenger

Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, The Netherlands


Prof Daniel Kelly

Cardiff University, UK 


Mrs Iveta Nohavova

EONS, Belgium

Acknowledgment

This project is possible thanks to a restricted grant from Eisai and Ipsen.