Psychological Distress in Long-term Survivors of Adult-Onset Cancer

Abstract

Long-term survivors of adult-onset cancer are at increased risk for psychological distress. This study identifies several clinical and sociodemographic factors associated with SPD that may help target high-risk survivors for psychological screening and support.

Evaluation of a screening programme for psychological distress in cancer survivors

“…The few studies that have explored the determinants of psychological distress in this population showed an association with some socio-demographic characteristics of the patients such as younger age, lower degree of education and socioeconomic status [6,[9][10][11]. Also, poor social support and decreased physical ability have been found to increase the probability of distress following anticancer treatments [12,13].…”

“…Most studies are focused on the months after treatment completion, and only a few have assessed survivors throughout the course of subsequent years [3,4]. According to these studies, the impact of cancer on survivors' adjustment seems minimal [4][5][6][7][8], but the results from a recent national US study indicate that this population is almost twice as likely to report severe psychological distress as subjects never diagnosed with cancer [9].…”

Psychological distress among adult cancer survivors: importance of survivorship care plan

“…Prior research has shown that some of the risk factors associated with psychological distress in adult cancer survivors are older age at evaluation, being female, not married, unemployed, having no health insurance, low educational attainment [7,10,26], suffering of cancer-related pain [27,28], and chronic conditions [10,7].…”

“…Prior research has shown that a significant percentage of cancer survivors are at increased risk of psychological sequelae [7][8][9][10], such as depression, anxiety, overall psychological distress, and post-traumatic stress disorder. These sequelae, if left untreated, can lead to reduced quality of life, suicide ideation, and increased cancer mortality [11][12][13].…”

Identification of health care needs of long-term breast cancer survivors among Israeli women

“…A systematic review of the prevalence of depression in breast cancer survivors reported a median prevalence of 22 % in two studies, with ranges of 13-56 and 17-48 %, respectively [26]. An additional study found a significantly higher prevalence of serious psychological distress (SPD) among long-term cancer survivors (12 years post-diagnosis) compared with respondents who never had cancer (5.6 versus 3.0 %; p<.001) [27]. Furthermore, a study based on long-term breast cancer survivors 47 months following diagnosis reported overall psychological comorbidity of 43 and 26 % for possible and probable psychiatric disorders, respectively.…”