Severe Stress More Common Among Long-Term Cancer Survivors

	Tweet

Long-term survivors of adult cancers are almost twice as likely to report psychological distress severe enough to cause moderate to serious problems functioning in social, work or school situations, compared to the general population, according to a large, national study presented September 24, 2008, at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology’s 50th Annual Meeting in Boston.

Findings also show that younger long-term cancer survivors, those less than 65 years old, were more likely to experience severe psychological distress, than those survivors aged 65 and older. The study also found that there was no difference in the number of years since the cancer diagnosis and the increased risk of distress. Long-term cancer survivors are individuals who have lived five years or more beyond their initial cancer diagnosis.

“We hope these findings will raise awareness of the psychosocial needs of long-term cancer survivors and encourage routine psychological screening of these survivors,” Karen Hoffman, M.D., lead author of the study and a radiation oncologist at the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program at Harvard Medical School in Boston, said. “Quick, low-cost psychological screening tests are available that can and should be performed during clinic visits.”

There are an estimated 12 million cancer survivors living in the United States. These survivors may face many stresses as a result of their cancer experience, including adjustment to physical disabilities, changes in their social support system and fear of the cancer returning or of dying from cancer. Researchers identified individuals with severe psychological distress based on how frequently they felt nervous, restless, hopeless, worthless and that everything was an effort.

The study involved 4,712 long-term survivors of adult-onset cancer and 126,841 respondents never diagnosed with cancer using the 2002-2006 National Health Interview Survey, an in-person health survey of the U.S. population. Among survivors, the mean age at cancer diagnosis was 47 years and the mean age at the interview time was 62 years. The majority were survivors of breast, gynecologic, male genitourinary and colorectal cancer.

Cancer survivors were more likely to report severe psychological distress than adults never diagnosed with cancer. In addition to other findings, survivors who were not married or living with a partner, had less than a high school education, were uninsured, were current or former smokers, or had difficulty with instrumental activities of daily living were more likely to experience severe distress than those without these characteristics.

The abstract, “Psychological Distress in Long-term Survivors of Adult-Onset Cancer: Results from a National Survey,” will be presented in a scientific session at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 24, 2008. To speak to the lead author of the study, Karen Hoffman, M.D., please call Beth Bukata or Nicole Napoli September 21-24, 2008, in the ASTRO Press Room at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center at 617-954-3377 or 617-954-3378. You may also e-mail them at or .

Source: American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO)

RELATED STORIES:
Exercise and healthy diet slow memory loss   Speech monitoring could track Parkinson’s: study   Trojan Horse ploy to sneak protective drug into brains of stroke patients   Subtle Nervous System Abnormalities Predict Risk of Death   Restless Leg Syndrome may indicate other problems   Scientists Identify How Immune Cells May Help Predict Alzheimer’s Risk   Parkinson’s drug linked to heart valve damage   Daydreaming activity linked to Alzheimer’s   Study finds that high dose of MS drug works better   Long-lasting Nerve Block Could Change Pain Management   Preliminary new blood test to detect Alzheimer’s disease uncovered   People with Lou Gehrig disease are living longer

Comments

[ + Post Your Own ]

Now you're in the public comment zone. What follows is not Armenian Medical Network's stuff; it comes from other people and we don't vouch for it. A reminder: By using this Web site you agree to accept our Terms of Service. Click here to read the Rules of Engagement.

There are no comments for this entry yet. [ + Comment here + ]