Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in newly diagnosed patients with head and neck cancer and their partners

Abstract

Background Head and neck cancer is a life threatening illness requiring aversive treatments. Despite clear potential for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in both patients and their partners, research is scant. Methods Newly diagnosed patients and partners (no. of dyads=42) completed questionnaires to assess symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, and depression, as well as demographic, medical, and attitudinal variables. Results Partners had higher average levels of PTSD symptoms than patients (p=.023). More partners (28.6%) met criteria for estimated PTSD caseness than did patients (11.9%). There were no significant differences in levels of other anxiety or depression symptoms. Perceived threat of disease appears to be a stronger correlate of PTSD symptom levels than medical variables in patients and partners. Conclusions A diagnosis of head and neck cancer elicits significant levels of PTSD symptoms in patients, and even higher levels among partners. Identified correlates of distress, including perceived threat of disease, are potential intervention targets.

Illness perceptions and coping predict post-traumatic stress in caregivers of patients with head and neck cancer

“…Our results corroborate previous findings that clinicians need to be aware of PTSD symptoms in not only HNC patients but also their caregivers [6]. This is particularly important in light of evidence that caregiver distress influences patient outcomes [41,42].…”

“…Results showed that 19 % of caregivers met criteria for estimated PTSD caseness 6 months after HNC diagnosis. This rate is slightly lower than the 29 % reported in HNC caregivers between 4 and 16 weeks after HNC diagnosis [6], which is an earlier timeframe. The presence of PTSD symptoms at 6 months is consistent with the growing literature demonstrating high rates of psychological distress in HNC caregivers across the disease trajectory [3], as well as in caregivers of patients with other cancer types [26][27][28].…”

“…Previous research found that perceptions of threat held by spouses of patients with HNC were significantly related to their PTSD symptoms, representative of a medium effect size (r = .38) [6]. G-power software [17] indicated that a sample of 39 caregivers would be needed to detect a similar effect (setting power at .80 and alpha at .05) using correlation analyses.…”

“…HNC caregivers report higher levels of perceived burden and strain at 2-6 months post-diagnosis, compared to later in the disease trajectory [11]. Only one study has identified factors that are associated with the experience of PTSD symptoms in HNC caregivers, and this found that depression and anxiety, as well as perceptions of disease threat, were associated with a greater number of symptoms [6].…”

“…Caregivers of patients with HNC also report low mood and fear of cancer recurrence [5]. Moreover, recent research has established that spouses of patients with HNC report high levels of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms at diagnosis [6]. Twenty-nine percent of spouses met criteria for estimated PTSD caseness in comparison to 11 % of patients.…”