Alexandre Chan1,2, Eileen Poon3, Wei Lin Goh3, Yanxiang Gan4, Chia Jie Tan5,4, Kelvin Yeo5,4, Annabelle Chua5,4, Magdalene Chee3, Yi Chye Law3, Nagavalli Somasundaram3, Ravindran Kanesvaran3, Quan Sing Ng3, Chee Kian Tham3, Chee Keong Toh3, Soon Thye Lim3, Miriam Tao3, Tiffany Tang3, Richard Quek3, Mohamad Farid6. 1. Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore, Blk S4A Level 3, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore, 117543, Singapore. phaac@nus.edu.sg. 2. Department of Pharmacy, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore, Singapore. phaac@nus.edu.sg. 3. Division of Medical Oncology, 11 Hospital Drive, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore, 169610, Singapore. 4. Department of Pharmacy, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore, Singapore. 5. Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore, Blk S4A Level 3, 18 Science Drive 4, Singapore, 117543, Singapore. 6. Division of Medical Oncology, 11 Hospital Drive, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore, 169610, Singapore. mohamad.farid@singhealth.com.sg.
Abstract
PURPOSE: Since few studies have investigated whether the Distress Thermometer (DT) in Asian adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients (between 15 and 39 years), we investigated the appropriateness of the DT as a screening tool for psychological symptom burden in these AYA patients and to evaluate AYA patients' distress across a trajectory of three time points longitudinally over a 6-month period. METHODS: This was a prospective, longitudinal study. Recruited Asian AYA patients were diagnosed with lymphomas, sarcomas, primary brain malignancies, or germ cell tumors. Patients completed the DT, PedsQL Generic Core Scales, and the Rotterdam Symptom Checklist. Data were analyzed using STATA version 15. RESULTS: Approximately half of the patients experienced clinically significant DT distress (distress score ≥ 4) early in their cancer journey with 43.1% patients presenting with distress at time of diagnosis and 47.7% patients 1 month after diagnosis. Among AYA patients > 24 years old, worry (68.3%), insurance/financial issues (61%), treatment decisions (43.9%), work/school issues (41.5%), nervousness (41.5%), and sadness (41.5%) were the top five identified problems. On the other hand, the top five identified problems among AYA ≤ 24 years were worry (54.2%), nervousness (41.7%), bathing/dressing problems (37.5%), work/school issues (33.3%), and fatigue (33.3%). DT scores were significantly associated with certain psychological symptom burden items such as worry (p < 0.001), depressed mood (p = 0.020), and nervousness (p = 0.015). CONCLUSION: The DT is a useful screening tool for psychological distress in AYA cancer patients with clinically significant distress being identified in the early phases of the cancer journey.
PURPOSE: Since few studies have investigated whether the Distress Thermometer (DT) in Asian adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancerpatients (between 15 and 39 years), we investigated the appropriateness of the DT as a screening tool for psychological symptom burden in these AYA patients and to evaluate AYA patients' distress across a trajectory of three time points longitudinally over a 6-month period. METHODS: This was a prospective, longitudinal study. Recruited Asian AYA patients were diagnosed with lymphomas, sarcomas, primary brain malignancies, or germ cell tumors. Patients completed the DT, PedsQL Generic Core Scales, and the Rotterdam Symptom Checklist. Data were analyzed using STATA version 15. RESULTS: Approximately half of the patients experienced clinically significant DT distress (distress score ≥ 4) early in their cancer journey with 43.1% patients presenting with distress at time of diagnosis and 47.7% patients 1 month after diagnosis. Among AYA patients > 24 years old, worry (68.3%), insurance/financial issues (61%), treatment decisions (43.9%), work/school issues (41.5%), nervousness (41.5%), and sadness (41.5%) were the top five identified problems. On the other hand, the top five identified problems among AYA ≤ 24 years were worry (54.2%), nervousness (41.7%), bathing/dressing problems (37.5%), work/school issues (33.3%), and fatigue (33.3%). DT scores were significantly associated with certain psychological symptom burden items such as worry (p < 0.001), depressed mood (p = 0.020), and nervousness (p = 0.015). CONCLUSION: The DT is a useful screening tool for psychological distress in AYA cancerpatients with clinically significant distress being identified in the early phases of the cancer journey.
Entities:
Keywords:
Adolescent and young adults; Cancer; Psychological distress
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