European Journal of Cancer Care最新文献

Purpose: To assess the prevalence and characteristics of symptoms and quality of life (QoL) among cancer survivors in Oman.

Methods: A cross-sectional correlational descriptive design was employed in three major healthcare settings in Muscat, Oman.

Results: The sample comprise 292 cancer survivors with an average age of 47.9 years (SD = 13.0) and a mean survival period of 2.5 years (SD = 3.3). The most reported symptoms were lack of energy (55.1%), numbness or tingling (53.8%), pain (53.1%), and worrying (51.7%), with an average of 10.9 symptoms per survivor. The overall QoL score was 23.9 (SD = 5.0), with the highest scores in the family (25.5, SD = 5.8) and psychological/spiritual (25.1, SD = 5.8) domains. Employment, marital status, and higher income were significant predictors of better QoL, while multiple treatments and high psychological symptoms were linked to poorer QoL.

Conclusion: This study highlights the significant symptom burden and its impact on QoL among cancer survivors in Oman. Tailored interventions addressing both physical and psychological needs are essential to enhance survivors’ QoL.

Introduction: Mesothelioma is a life-limiting cancer that results in an array of psychological difficulties. While this cancer is associated with older men exposed to asbestos, it can develop in people under 60, though little research has considered the challenges and ways of supporting this younger demographic.

Methods: Online semistructured interviews were carried out one-to-one with a total of 18 individuals; 6 men and 12 women, aged 26–59 (mean age 45), diagnosed with pleural or peritoneal mesothelioma. Participants could also share and discuss photographs to help further convey their cancer experiences. An interpretative phenomenological approach guided the analysis of transcript and photographic data.

Results: Two themes with discrete subthemes are presented: “dying young of an older person’s disease,” which explores individuals’ experiences of shock at diagnosis and widespread sense of disrupted living, concern for family members, and lack of peer support, and “living young with an older person’s disease,” which explores psychobehavioral coping via focus on the atypicality of mesothelioma in young groups, return to everyday living, and via activities and exercise to manage anxiety and foster a sense of agency.

Conclusion: Findings demonstrate the need to develop tailored clinical and psychotherapeutic support to address the practical and psychological difficulties younger people encounter.

Introduction: This study investigates the relationship between maternal quality of life during pregnancy and childhood cancer risk, hypothesizing that lower maternal well-being increases the likelihood of cancer development in children.

Methods: This embedded explanatory sequential mixed-methods case-control study was conducted in Kerman, Iran, including 191 children under six, with 136 diagnosed with cancer in 2023. From these, 73 mothers of affected children were purposefully selected and compared to 118 mothers of healthy children, matched by age and socioeconomic status. Maternal factors (e.g., age, education, employment, medical history, and lifestyle) were assessed using validated questionnaires (GHQ-28, SES), administered through structured interviews. Logistic regression (SPSS 28) and Python-based heatmap visualization were used for analysis. Qualitative data were extracted from interview narratives and analyzed thematically.

Results: Between 2014 and 2023, pediatric cancer diagnoses increased, especially malignant types. Significant maternal factors included older age, unemployment, lower education, medical history, and smoking. Paternal education, occupational exposure, and smoking also contributed. Qualitative themes—persistent anxiety, depressive thoughts, and perceived lack of purpose—offered contextual depth to the statistical findings.

Conclusions: Maternal quality of life during pregnancy significantly influences childhood cancer risk. Integrated interventions addressing maternal mental health, socioeconomic disparities, and occupational exposures are essential. Public health policies should prioritize maternal well-being to create protective environments for children.