RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Studies evaluating the effects of natural disasters on cancer outcomes are scarce, especially among USA ethnic minority groups, and none have focused on the effects of concurrent natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this secondary data analysis is to explore the impact of concurrent exposure to COVID-19 and earthquakes on psychological distress and symptom burden among Puerto Rican cancer survivors. METHODS: This secondary data analysis (n = 101) was part of a longitudinal case-control cohort study (n = 402) aimed at describing unmet psychological needs among Puerto Rican cancer patients and non-cancer subjects previously exposed to Hurricane María in 2017. The research team pooled data from participants (cancer survivors and non-cancer group) from their baseline assessments and from follow-up assessments conducted during January-July 2020 (earthquake and the lockdown period). A descriptive, paired t-test, non-parametric mean rank test, and two-sided Pearson correlation analyses were performed. RESULTS: Psychological distress and cancer symptom burden diminished over time. Resilience was significantly correlated with all the psychological and symptom burden variables during both pre- and post-earthquake and COVID-19 assessment periods. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the role of resilience, social support, and post-traumatic growth as potential protective factors preventing psychological distress and diminishing cancer symptom burden among cancer survivors exposed to natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Assuntos
Ansiedade , COVID-19 , Sobreviventes de Câncer , Depressão , Hispânico ou Latino , Desastres Naturais , Transtornos de Estresse Pós-Traumáticos , Adulto , Idoso , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Ansiedade/epidemiologia , Ansiedade/psicologia , Sobreviventes de Câncer/psicologia , Estudos de Casos e Controles , COVID-19/psicologia , COVID-19/epidemiologia , Tempestades Ciclônicas , Depressão/epidemiologia , Depressão/psicologia , Terremotos , Hispânico ou Latino/psicologia , Estudos Longitudinais , Angústia Psicológica , Porto Rico/epidemiologia , Transtornos de Estresse Pós-Traumáticos/epidemiologia , Transtornos de Estresse Pós-Traumáticos/psicologia , Estresse Psicológico/psicologia , Carga de SintomasRESUMO
Background: Anxiety and depression symptoms are known to increase cancer symptom burden, yet little is known about the longitudinal integrations of these among Hispanic/Latinx patients. The goal of this study was to explore the trajectory and longitudinal interactions among anxiety and depression, cancer symptom burden, and health-related quality of life in Hispanic/Latinx cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. METHODS: Baseline behavioral assessments were performed before starting chemotherapy. Follow-up behavioral assessments were performed at 3, 6, and 9 months after starting chemotherapy. Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, Fisher's exact tests, and Mann-Whitney tests explored associations among outcome variables. Adjusted multilevel mixed-effects linear regression models were also used to evaluate the association between HADS scores, follow-up visits, FACT-G scale, MDASI scale, and sociodemographic variables. RESULTS: Increased cancer symptom burden was significantly related to changes in anxiety symptoms' scores (adjusted ß^ = 0.11 [95% CI: 0.02, 0.19]. Increased quality of life was significantly associated with decreased depression and anxiety symptoms (adjusted ß^ = -0.33; 95% CI: -0.47, -0.18, and 0.38 adjusted ß^= -0.38; 95% CI: -0.55, -0.20, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight the need to conduct periodic mental health screenings among cancer patients initiating cancer treatment.