Journal of Psychosocial Oncology最新文献

Objectives: Mood disorders and existential distress impact those with cancer or a serious illness at higher rates than the general population. There have been limited pharmacological advances in recent years, and available psychological interventions vary in degree of impact and durability as a treatment modality in this population. A recent renaissance in psychedelic research has suggested that this class of medications might offer an alternative treatment model for anxiety, depression, and existential and psychological distress that often accompanies the diagnosis of a serious illness.

Methods: Utilizing a narrative review approach, EMBASE and PubMed databases were searched with no beginning date range through April 2024 to identify randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) on LSD, psilocybin and MDMA in palliative care or oncology and other life limiting illnesses.

Results: Five articles published between 2011 and 2020 met the inclusion criteria. Three studies utilized psilocybin and one study evaluated MDMA and LSD. The number of participants ranged from 12 to 56 with four studies that utilized a crossover design. Four of the five studies showed a significant decrease in anxiety during at least one time point in their study and three studies indicated a significant decrease in depression. None of the studies reported serious adverse events related to the experimental drug sessions.

Conclusions: Psychedelic assisted therapy for the treatment of depression, anxiety and existential distress is a promising treatment modality as an addition or compliment to other available pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatment modalities.

Background: This meta-review aimed to synthesize the evidence of the effects of exercise on anxiety and depression symptoms amongst adults with cancer, and cancer-survivors, comparing effects sizes between meta-analysis.

Methods: Major databases were searched up to February 9, 2024 for meta-analyses evaluating the effects of exercise, using anxiety and/or depression scales. Effect size (ES) values were calculated as standardized differences in the means and expressed as the Standardized Mean Difference (SMD) with the 95% confidence interval (95%CI). A total of eight unique meta-analyses were included.

Results: Among meta-analyses examining both anxiety and depression symptoms overall, a small beneficial effect of exercise was shown [SMD = 0.41 (0.25-0.57); p < 0.0001]. Subgroup analyses revealed that exercise has a small effect on decreasing anxiety [SMD = 0.42 (0.04-0.79); p = 0.027], and depressive symptoms [SMD = 0.38 (0.21-0.56); p < 0.0001]. In addition, aerobic exercise has a moderate effect on reducing depressive symptoms [SMD = 0.54 (0.16-0.93); p = 0.005], whereas resistance exercise has no effect. Subgroup analyses by type of cancer observed a moderate effect on decreasing depressive symptoms in patients with breast cancer [SMD = 0.51 (0.27-0.74); p < 0.0001].

Conclusions: Exercise (specifically aerobic) should be considered by healthcare professionals as a strategy to treat/manage symptoms of anxiety and depression amongst adults with cancer and cancer-survivors.

Purpose: We investigated sleep-related challenges and their association with family functioning in children and adolescents previously treated for craniopharyngioma.

Design: Quantitative approach using psychometrically validated measures.

Sample: Thirty-nine children and adolescents who had been treated for craniopharyngioma and their primary caregivers.

Methods: Caregivers and youth completed measures of family functioning, family routines, daytime sleepiness, and children's sleep patterns.

Findings: Children and adolescents with craniopharyngioma had significantly higher ratings of self-reported excessive daytime sleepiness, bedtime fears/worries, and restless legs symptoms compared to their relatively healthy peers. Lack of family routines and poor family functioning were related to poor sleep-related outcomes and increased excessive daytime sleepiness.

Implications for psychosocial providers: Providers should consider assessing sleep difficulties in pediatric brain tumor survivors from a family systems perspective. Intervening on family-related factors may help improve sleep and other health-related outcomes, whereas intervening on sleep may help improve family functioning.

Purpose: To describe differences in post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms over time among racial and ethnic minoritized breast cancer survivors (BCS) with comorbid diabetes.

Design: In a multisite longitudinal study, post-traumatic stress was evaluated at baseline, 6 and 12 months through self-reported questionnaires (Impact of Events Scale-Revised [IES-R]).

Participants: One hundred and seventy-eight post-treatment BCS with diabetes were recruited from three tertiary medical centers.

Findings: Relative to non-Hispanic White women, minoritized women reported higher total IES-R scores at all time points. In the adjusted model, Latina women reported persistently higher IES-R total scores and Latina, and 'Other' women reported higher avoidance scores.

Conclusions: Minoritized BCS with comorbid diabetes report higher rates of cancer related PTS that persist over 12 months.

Implications for psychosocial providers: Post diagnosis PTS evaluation and support is important in survivorship and primary care practices. Linkage to socially and culturally sensitive community support may be warranted.

The purpose of this study is to identify links between caregiver hope, caregiver coping behaviors, and caregivers' coaching versus dismissing emotion socialization (ES) beliefs in a pediatric cancer sample.

Self-report measures.

Caregivers (N = 183, 80.20% mothers; 58.5% white; 32.2% Hispanic) of youth undergoing cancer treatment (51.10% hematological malignancy, 15.30% brain or spinal [CNS] tumor, and 25.14% non-CNS solid tumor) for at least six weeks.

We used a series of mediation models to examine links between caregivers' coping behaviors, hope, and ES beliefs.

Caregivers' hope significantly mediated a positive relation between caregivers' coping and their emotion coaching beliefs, as well as an inverse relation between caregivers' maladaptive coping and their emotion dismissing beliefs.

Enhancing caregivers' hope or adaptive coping may support caregivers' beliefs during the pediatric cancer experience.

Our findings support future research to evaluate whether enhancing caregivers' hope or adaptive coping may help support evidence-based interventions that target ES beliefs and behaviors.