Prevalence of distress, its associated factors and referral to support services in people with cancer

Abstract

Aims and objectives: To (i) characterise prevalence of distress amongst people diagnosed with cancer, (ii) determine factors associated with increasing distress, (iii) describe reported problems for those with clinically significant distress and (iv) investigate the factors associated with referral to support services. Background: International studies report a high prevalence of clinically significant distress in people with cancer. Australian studies are notably lacking. Additionally, clinicians still do not fully understand the factors associated with cancer-related distress. Design: Period prevalence study. Methods: Distress screening data were analysed for 1,071 people accessing the Cancer Council Western Australia information and support line between 01/01/2016-31/12/2018. These data included people's demographics, cancer diagnoses, level of distress, reported problems and the service to which they were referred. Distress and reported problems were measured using the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Distress Thermometer and Problem List. A partial proportional logistic regression model was constructed to determine which factors were associated with increasing levels of distress. Standard binary logistic regression models were used to investigate factors associated with referral to support services. The STROBE checklist was followed.Results: Prevalence of clinically significant distress was high. Self-reported depression, sadness, worry and a lack of control over treatment decisions were significantly associated with increasing distress. Emotional problems were the most prevalent problems for people with clinically significant distress. Most people were referred to emotional health services, with depression, fatigue, living regionally and higher socioeconomic status associated with referral.Conclusions: Emotional problems such as depression, sadness and worry are associated with increasing levels of distress.Relevance to clinical practice: Not all factors associated with referral to support services were those associated with increasing levels of distress. This suggests that other factors may be more influential to referral decisions.This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Prevalence of distress and its associated factors among caregivers of people diagnosed with cancer: A cross‐sectional study

“…This study's procedures followed the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) checklist (Von Elm et al, 2007 ) (Data S1 ). A comprehensive description of the methods is presented elsewhere (Kirk et al, 2021 ). Briefly, people affected by cancer are typically referred to the CCWA Information and Support Line service by a CCWA representative or health professional (Cancer Nurses or General Practitioners).…”

What are the post‐treatment information needs of rural cancer survivors in Australia? A systematic literature review

“…Information about cancer support services was a common need and tended to be lacking for many rural cancer survivors, particularly information about psychological and emotional support. 22,34,38,44,45,[53][54][55] In one survey study with 1071 cancer survivors, participants living in moderately to highly accessible areas were between two and four times more likely to receive a referral to an emotional support service than those from remote and very remote areas. 55 In another study, 82 rural men with genito-urinary cancer were surveyed and over one-third were not aware of the various psychological and counselling services available to them.…”

“…22,34,38,44,45,[53][54][55] In one survey study with 1071 cancer survivors, participants living in moderately to highly accessible areas were between two and four times more likely to receive a referral to an emotional support service than those from remote and very remote areas. 55 In another study, 82 rural men with genito-urinary cancer were surveyed and over one-third were not aware of the various psychological and counselling services available to them. 45 One study identified information related to mental health, including relaxation, managing stress, and fear of recurrence, as being in the top three ranked supportive care needs for a sample of 35 rural cancer survivors and their family and friends.…”

The psychological distress of gastrointestinal cancer patients and its association with quality of life among different genders

“…It is prevalent at different time points in fighting the illness among cancer patients. Measured by the distress thermometer, psychological distress is suffered by 25.3% to 71.7% of breast cancer patients [ 6 ], 49.04% of lung cancer [ 7 ], and 35% to 91% of patients with different cancer types [ 8 – 10 ]. An increasing emphasis is placed on the psychological distress experienced by cancer populations.…”