scholarly journals Comment on ‘Psychological distress in patients with cancer: is screening the effective solution?’

2013 ◽  
Vol 108 (12) ◽  
pp. 2628-2630 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Dekker ◽  
A T F Beekman ◽  
A D Boenink ◽  
H Bomhof-Roordink ◽  
A M Braamse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Effective Solution ◽  
Patients With Cancer

Bereavement risk assessment of family caregivers of patients with cancer: Japanese version of the Bereavement Risk Assessment Tool

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (04) ◽  
pp. 448-452
Author(s):  
Tomohiro Uchida ◽  
Noriaki Satake ◽  
Toshimichi Nakaho ◽  
Akira Inoue ◽  
Hidemitsu Saito
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Japanese Version ◽  
University Hospital ◽  
Risk Assessment Tool ◽  
Risk Level ◽  
Patients With Cancer ◽  
Distress Scale

AbstractObjectivesThe Bereavement Risk Assessment Tool (BRAT) seems to be useful in identifying those who are likely to suffer from the more severe consequences of bereavement. To date, however, only a few studies have examined bereavement risk using the BRAT. This study investigated bereavement risk in family caregivers of patients with cancer using the Japanese version of the Bereavement Risk Assessment Tool (BRAT-J). We also investigated the relationship of bereavement risk with psychological distress and resilience among caregivers to determine the validity of the BRAT-J.MethodsWe conducted family psychoeducation in the palliative care unit of Tohoku University Hospital with participants who were recruited in this study. Among the participants, 50 family caregivers provided their written informed consent and were included in this study. Participants were assessed using the BRAT-J and completed the Japanese version of the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6) and the Tachikawa Resilience Scale (TRS).ResultsAccording to the BRAT-J, five individuals (10%) were in the high category of bereavement risk (level 4 or 5). We also found that family caregivers of patients experienced many different pressures, such as facing the unknown; their own work; and insufficient financial, practical, or physical resources. These issues are associated with various mental problems. Additionally, the level of bereavement risk was significantly correlated with K6 scores (ρ = 0.30, p = 0.032), and the TRS score (ρ = –0.44, p = 0.001). These correlations confirmed previous findings and that the BRAT-J can be an efficient screening tool for the bereavement risk of family caregivers of patients with cancer.Significance of resultsIt appears that the BRAT-J is useful in predicting the likelihood of difficulties or complications in bereavement for family caregivers and could help to provide support with these issues when needed.

scholarly journals Effects of a brief intervention program for patients with cancer and their partners on feelings of inequity, relationship quality and psychological distress

2004 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 321-334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roeline G. Kuijer ◽  
Bram P. Buunk ◽  
G. Majella de Jong ◽  
Jan F. Ybema ◽  
Robbert Sanderman
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Relationship Quality ◽  
Brief Intervention ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Patients With Cancer

Dyadic associations between psychological distress and sleep disturbance among Chinese patients with cancer and their spouses

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 856-861 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessie S.M. Chan ◽  
Nancy Xiaonan Yu ◽  
Amy Y.M. Chow ◽  
Cecilia L.W. Chan ◽  
Ka-Fai Chung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Sleep Disturbance ◽  
Chinese Patients ◽  
Patients With Cancer

Trajectories of Psychological Distress in Adolescent and Young Adult Patients With Cancer: A 1-Year Longitudinal Study

2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (17) ◽  
pp. 2160-2166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Minyoung Kwak ◽  
Brad J. Zebrack ◽  
Kathleen A. Meeske ◽  
Leanne Embry ◽  
Christine Aguilar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Young Adult ◽  
Symptom Burden ◽  
Brief Symptom Inventory ◽  
Adolescent And Young Adult ◽  
Cancer Type ◽  
Clinical Predictors ◽  
Population Norms ◽  
Patients With Cancer

Purpose To examine prevalence and changes in symptoms of psychological distress over 1 year after initial cancer diagnosis in adolescent and young adult (AYA) patients with cancer. Sociodemographic and clinical predictors of changes in distress were examined. Patients and Methods In this multisite, longitudinal, prospective study of an ethnically diverse sample, 215 patients age 14 to 39 years were assessed for psychological distress within the first 4 months of diagnosis and again 6 and 12 months later. Linear mixed models with random intercept and slope estimated changes in distress, as measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18). Results Within the first 4 months of diagnosis, 60 respondents (28%) had BSI-18 scores suggesting caseness for distress. On average, distress symptoms exceeded population norms at the time of diagnosis, dipped at the 6-month follow-up, but increased to a level exceeding population norms at the 12-month follow-up. A statistically significant decline in distress over 1 year was observed; however, the gradient of change was not clinically significant. Multivariate analyses revealed that the reduction in distress over time was primarily a function of being off treatment and involved in school or work. Notably, cancer type or severity was not associated with distress. Conclusion Findings emphasize the importance of early psychosocial intervention for distress in AYAs as well as the need to manage treatment-related symptoms and facilitate AYAs' involvement in work or school to the extent possible. Continued research is needed to understand how distress relates to quality of life, functional outcomes, treatment, and symptom burden throughout the continuum of care.

scholarly journals Identification of Anxiety and Depression Symptoms in Patients With Cancer: Comparison Between Short and Long Web-Based Questionnaires (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Mattsson ◽  
Erik Martin Gustaf Olsson ◽  
Maria Carlsson ◽  
Birgitta Beda Kristina Johansson
Keyword(s):  
Colorectal Cancer ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Intervention Study ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Screening Methods ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Patients With Cancer

BACKGROUND Physicians and nurses in cancer care easily fail to detect symptoms of psychological distress because of barriers such as lack of time, training on screening methods, and knowledge about how to diagnose anxiety and depression. National guidelines in several countries recommend routine screening for emotional distress in patients with cancer, but in many clinics, this is not implemented. By inventing screening methods that are time-efficient, such as digitalized and automatized screenings with short instruments, we can alleviate the burden on patients and staff. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to compare Web-based versions of the ultrashort electronic Visual Analogue Scale (eVAS) anxiety and eVAS depression and the short Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) with Web-based versions of the longer Montgomery Åsberg Depression Rating Scale-Self-report (MADRS-S) and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory- State (STAI-S) with regard to their ability to identify symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with cancer. METHODS Data were obtained from a consecutive sample of patients with newly diagnosed (<6 months) breast, prostate, or colorectal cancer or with recurrence of colorectal cancer (N=558). The patients were recruited at 4 hospitals in Sweden between April 2013 and September 2015, as part of an intervention study administered via the internet. All questionnaires were completed on the Web at the baseline assessment in the intervention study. RESULTS The ultrashort and short Web-based-delivered eVAS anxiety, eVAS depression and HADS were found to have an excellent ability to discriminate between persons with and without clinical levels of symptoms of anxiety and depression compared with recommended cutoffs of the longer instruments MADRS-S and STAI-S (area under the curve: 0.88-0.94). Cutoffs of >6 on HADS anxiety and >7 hundredths (hs) on eVAS anxiety identified patients with anxiety symptoms with high accuracy. For HADS depression, at a cutoff of >5 and eVAS depression at a cutoff of >7 hs, the accuracy was very high likewise. CONCLUSIONS The use of the short and ultrashort tools, eVAS and HADS, may be a suitable initial method of Web-based screening in busy clinical settings. However, there are still a proportion of patients who lack access to the internet or the ability to use it. There is a need to find solutions for this group to find all the patients with psychological distress.

scholarly journals Face-to-Face and Internet-Based Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Compared With Treatment as Usual in Reducing Psychological Distress in Patients With Cancer: A Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (23) ◽  
pp. 2413-2421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Félix Compen ◽  
Else Bisseling ◽  
Melanie Schellekens ◽  
Rogier Donders ◽  
Linda Carlson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Fear Of Cancer Recurrence ◽  
Health Related Quality ◽  
Patients With Cancer ◽  
Mindfulness Skills ◽  
Related Quality ◽  
Health Related

Purpose Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) has been shown to alleviate psychological distress in patients with cancer. However, patients experience barriers to participating in face-to-face MBCT. Individual Internet-based MBCT (eMBCT) could be an alternative. The study aim was to compare MBCT and eMBCT with treatment as usual (TAU) for psychological distress in patients with cancer. Patients and Methods We obtained ethical and safety approval to include 245 patients with cancer with psychological distress (≥ 11 on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) in the study. They were randomly allocated to MBCT (n = 77), eMBCT (n = 90), or TAU (n = 78). Patients completed baseline (T0) and postintervention (T1) assessments. The primary outcome was psychological distress on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Secondary outcomes were psychiatric diagnosis, fear of cancer recurrence, rumination, health-related quality of life, mindfulness skills, and positive mental health. Continuous outcomes were analyzed using linear mixed modeling on the intention-to-treat sample. Because both interventions were compared with TAU, the type I error rate was set at P < .025. Results Compared with TAU, patients reported significantly less psychological distress after both MBCT (Cohen’s d, .45; P < .001) and eMBCT (Cohen’s d, .71; P < .001) . In addition, post-treatment prevalence of psychiatric diagnosis was lower with both MBCT (33% improvement; P = .030) and eMBCT (29% improvement; P = .076) in comparison with TAU (16%), but these changes were not statistically significant. Both interventions reduced fear of cancer recurrence and rumination, and increased mental health–related quality of life, mindfulness skills, and positive mental health compared with TAU (all Ps < .025). Physical health–related quality of life did not improve ( P = .343). Conclusion Compared with TAU, MBCT and eMBCT were similarly effective in reducing psychological distress in a sample of distressed heterogeneous patients with cancer.

scholarly journals EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alberto Portigliatti Pomeri ◽  
Anna La Salvia ◽  
Sara Carletto ◽  
Francesco Oliva ◽  
Luca Ostacoli
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Traumatic Event ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Level Of Evidence ◽  
Patients With Cancer ◽  
Common Clinical Presentation ◽  
Emdr Therapy

Background: Psychological distress is common among patients with cancer, with severe consequences on their quality of life. Anxiety and depression are the most common clinical presentation of psychological distress in cancer patients, but in some cases cancer may represent a traumatic event resulting in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Currently, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is considered an evidence-based treatment for PTSD, but recent studies also showed its effectiveness for anxiety and depression. The aim of the present systematic review is to summarize the current literature on the effect of EMDR on cancer-related psychological distress.Methods: A literature search was conducted for peer-reviewed articles about “EMDR” and “cancer patients” in the following electronic databases: PubMed, MEDLINE, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Cochrane library.Results: Our search identified 7 studies in which EMDR was used with a total of 140 cancer patients. The psychiatric diagnosis was PTSD in 3 studies. Otherwise, the diagnosis concerned the anxious and depressive disorder spectrum. Overall, EMDR treatment schedules used were highly heterogeneous, with a different number of sessions (from 2 to 12) and a different duration of therapy (up to 4 months). However, across all studies analyzed EMDR therapy was judged to be adequate in reducing symptoms of psychological distress in this population.Conclusions: According to the results of our analysis, the level of evidence regarding EMDR efficacy in cancer patients is limited by the scarcity of studies and their low methodological quality. Although better quality research is needed, available data suggest that EMDR could be a promising treatment for psychological distress in patients with cancer.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document