Fear of recurrence and its impact on quality of life in patients with hematological cancers in the course of allogeneic hematopoietic SCT

Abstract

We examined the course and the prevalence of a high fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) in patients undergoing allogeneic PBSC transplantation (hematopoietic SCT (HSCT)) before HSCT (N = 239), 100 days after (n = 150, and 12 months after allogeneic HSCT (n = 102). The Fear of Progression Questionnaire-Short Form (FoP-Q-SF), the EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale were used. Pre-HSCT 36% of patients, 100 days after HSCT 24% of patients, and 1 year after HSCT 23% of patients fulfilled the criteria for high FCR (FoP-Q-SF cutoff = 34). Being married (b = 2.76, P = 0.026), female gender (b = 4.45, Po 0.001) and depression (b = 4.44, P o 0.001) were significantly associated with FCR at baseline. One hundred days after HSCT, depression significantly predicted FCR (b = 6.46, Po 0.001). One year following HSCT, female gender (b = 6.61, P = 0.008) and higher depression were (b = 4.88, P = 0.004) significant predictors for FCR. Over the three assessment points, patients with high FCR had a significantly lower quality of life compared to patients with low FCR in physical functioning (P = 0.019), role functioning (P = 0.003), emotional functioning (P o 0.001), cognitive functioning (P = 0.003), social functioning (P o 0.001) and global quality of life (P o 0.001). Our data provide evidence that FCR is a prevalent problem in patients with hematological malignancies and has a significant adverse impact on health-related quality of life.

Smoking versus quitting and fear of cancer recurrence 9 years after diagnosis in the American Cancer Society's Longitudinal Study of Cancer Survivors‐I (SCS‐I)

“…Previous studies have found that survivors experience reductions in FCR with the passage of time, but our results suggest that this may not be the case for survivors who smoke. These findings contribute to the relatively scarce research on FCR and smoking.…”

Fear of cancer progression in patients with stage IA malignant melanoma

“…For example, in the sample of mixed cancer patients that was used for FoP‐Q‐SF validation, a comparable sum score of 34.8 was found (Mehnert et al., ). Assessment in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplant (Sarkar et al., ) and in breast cancer survivors (Jendrian et al., ) revealed a slightly lower means comparable to that of the 30.2 score found in our cohort. In contrast, considerably lower FoP (mean 16.7) was found in another cohort of mixed cancer entities (Sarkar et al., ) as well as in a cohort of long‐term survivors of breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer (mean 26.9).…”

Spiritual Well-Being in Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Survivors of Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

“…Transplant complications arise as a result of the conditioning regimen, the new donor-derived immune system, sequelae from prolonged immunosuppressant treatments that prevent acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease and side effects from supportive medications (Arnaout et al, 2014; Bevans et al, 2014; Mitchell et al, 2010; Pidala, Anasetti, & Jim, 2009; Tichelli, Rovo, & Socie, 2012). In addition to these biological effects, unpleasant symptoms, functional impairment, and psychosocial distress (for example fear of recurrence) can have a deleterious impact on several patient-centered outcomes, including health-related quality of life (HRQL) (Bevans et al, 2014; Gifford, Sim, Horne, & Ma, 2014; Kenzik, Huang, Rizzo, Shenkman, & Wingard, 2014; Mitchell et al, 2010; Mohty & Mohty, 2011; Norkin, Hsu, & Wingard, 2012; Pidala et al, 2009; Sarkar et al, 2014; Syrjala et al, 2012; Tichelli et al, 2012). …”