Background: People with cancer experience financial hardship. Most previous research has focused on material financial burden rather than financial worry. This study investigated employment predictors of financial worry and examined outcomes potentially affected by financial worry.
Methods: Data from the 2018 National Health Interview Study was used and limited to people diagnosed with cancer and having complete data on relevant variables (n = 2049). Preliminary analyses indicated three dimensions of financial worry: healthcare; lifestyle; and basic needs. Outcomes included cost-related nonadherence, and presence of depressive symptoms and anxiety. Multivariable regressions examined the association of financial worry with cost-related nonadherence and mental health and employment characteristics (paid hourly; sick leave; employer size) with financial worry while controlling for demographics.
Results: Mean age was 68.10 years (range: 20-85), and most had skin (33.6%), prostate (12.5%) or breast (21.4%) cancer. Hourly pay predicted more financial worry about affording healthcare (p < 0.001), basic needs (p < 0.001) and lifestyle (p < 0.001). Having paid sick leave predicted less worry about basic needs (p = 0.003). Worry about affording healthcare predicted more cost-related nonadherence (p < 0.001) even when controlling for other variables associated with financial hardship. Worry about lifestyle (p = 0.193) and basic needs (p = 0.688) were not associated with cost-related nonadherence. Worry about lifestyle (p < 0.001) predicted depression. Worry about affording healthcare (p = 0.042) and lifestyle (p < 0.001) predicted anxiety.
Conclusions: Research is needed to determine the value of financial worry screening, particularly about affording healthcare, as well as material financial hardship. Financial worry should be included as an outcome in policy evaluations and interventions for financial hardship.
Objective: To identify whether supportive care needs vary according to remoteness and area-level socio-economic status and to identify the combinations of socio-demographic, area-level and health factors that are associated with poorer quality of life, psychological distress and severity of unmet supportive care needs.
Methods: Cross sectional data was collected from women with a breast cancer diagnosis (n = 2635) in Queensland, Australia, through a telephone survey including socio-demographic, health, psychosocial and supportive care needs measures. Hierarchical regression and cluster analyses were applied to assess the predictors of unmet need and psychosocial outcomes and to identify socio-demographic and health status profiles of women, comparing their level of unmet needs and psychosocial outcomes.
Results: Women living in outer regional areas reported the highest severity of unmet need in the patient care domain. Greater unmet need for health systems and information and patient care was also evident for those in moderately and most disadvantaged areas. Three clusters were identified reflecting (1) older women with poorer health and lower education (19%); (2) younger educated women with better health and private insurance (61%); and (3) physically active women with localised cancer who had completed treatment (20%). Poorer outcomes were evident in the first two of these clusters.
Conclusions: This better understanding of the combinations of characteristics associated with poorer psychosocial outcomes and higher unmet need can be used to identify women with higher supportive care needs early and to target interventions.
Objective: The caregivers who provide care for patients with cancer often experience emotional and psychological stressors and burdens that could be influenced by several factors, including the cultural context. This study examines the level of emotional distress and burden and their effect on the quality of life (QOL) of Jordanian cancer patients' caregivers.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 257 family caregivers of patients at various stages of cancer.
Results: The average age of caregivers was 37.5 years (SD = 12.2). Most caregivers (145; 59.2%) were female and married (168; 68.6%). About a quarter were partners (32.2%) and lived with their patients (137; 55.9%). Caregivers with a reduced overall Caregiver Quality of Life Index-Cancer (CQOLC) score were more likely to be older, the parents of the patients, and living with patients in the same house. A significant negative relationship was found between caregivers' CQOLC and Zarit Burden Interview (r = -0.7, p = 0.001), anxiety (r = -0.69, p = 0.001), and depression (r = -0.42, p = 0.03) scores. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that burden, anxiety, and depression scores were independent predictors and explained 63% of the variance in the total CQOLC score of caregivers.
Conclusion: Cancer caregivers are at elevated risk of poor QOL. Despite participants' low perception of the burden level, this study provides preliminary results for policymakers and medical practitioners to foster a comprehensive platform supporting cancer caregivers. Moreover, identifying the caregivers' readiness to provide the needed care and the availability of supportive resources, as a clinical routine, is strongly recommended.
Introduction: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with an increased risk of suicide and suicide attempt among cancer patients. However, we do not know how many cancer patients without MDD have suicidal ideation (SI).
Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence, characteristics and correlated factors of SI among advanced cancer patients without MDD.
Methods: This is a multi-center, cross-sectional study based on an electronic patient-reported outcome systems in patients who were diagnosed with advanced lung, liver, gastric, esophageal, colorectal or breast cancer, the top six prevalent cancers in China. A total of 2930 advanced cancer patients were recruited from 10 regional representative cancer centers across China from August 2019 to December 2020. Patients completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 regarding if they had thoughts of being better off dead or of hurting themselves in some way in the previous 2 weeks. Patients also completed the symptom inventory and quality of life assessment. Generalized estimating equation model was performed to explore the correlated factors associated with SI among the patients without MDD.
Results: The overall prevalence of SI among advanced cancer patients without MDD was 13.1%. The prevalence was higher in older patients. After adjusted for existing conditions, patients with vomiting symptom (p < 0.001), poorer life quality (p < 0.001), and middle education level (p = 0.031) were correlated factors of SI.
Conclusions: The suicidal ideation is common in advanced cancer patients without MDD. Patients with vomiting, poor quality of life, and middle education level should be screened and monitored for suicidal ideation even without MDD.
Clinical trial information: ChiCTR1900024957.
Objective: Relationships between pain and well-being are mediated by a variety of factors. This study examines a serial mediating role of meaning in life and coping in the relationship of total pain with psychological well-being in abdominal and pelvic cancer (APC) patients. Total pain is understood in terms of physical, psychological, social, and spiritual components interacting upon one another.
Methods: Adult patients diagnosed with the APC (N = 333) who were undergoing radiotherapy/chemotherapy treatment in two inpatient units of university hospitals completed questionnaires measuring total pain, psychological well-being, meaning in life, and coping. SEM analysis was used to examine serial mediation effects.
Results: All the dimensions of total pain were negatively associated with presence of meaning, coping strategies, and psychological well-being. In contrast, the pain dimensions were positively associated with search for meaning. Presence of meaning, search for meaning, emotion- and meaning-focused coping were serial mediators in the relationship between total pain and psychological well-being.
Conclusions: Our results strongly suggests that a holistic examination of pain among patients with cancer is important for several reasons. They also indicate that psychological well-being is significantly influenced by the serial interplay of personal meaning structures and coping abilities.
Objective: Breast cancer patients and caregivers experience biobehavioral reactivity (e.g., depression, anxiety, pain, fatigue) during breast cancer treatment which predicts cancer recurrence and mortality. High quality patient-caregiver relationships can mitigate this distress during treatment, but this association is unclear pre-treatment. Identifying early interventions that target high risk Appalachian patients could impact biobehavioral reactivity.
Methods: We recruited 55 breast cancer patient-caregiver dyads to complete a self-report survey after diagnosis but before treatment. We used a series of Actor-Partner Interdependence Models to test the hypotheses that both patient and caregiver relationship quality would be linked to their own and their partners' biobehavioral reactivity.
Results: Caregiver reported marital quality lower caregiver anxiety, patient anxiety, caregiver depression, patient depression, caregiver pain, and caregiver fatigue. Interestingly, patient-reported marital quality was linked with higher caregiver anxiety, higher patient anxiety, lower patient depression, and lower patient pain. Patients reported family quality was linked to lower patient and caregiver pain.
Conclusions: This study demonstrates that pre-treatment marital and family quality levels are directly related to psychophysiological measures in both the caregiver and the patient, though sometimes in unexpected directions. Additionally, our findings potentially reveal an opportunity to intervene at the time of diagnosis to improve relationship quality, impacting patient and caregiver psychophysiological outcomes.

