ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the relationship between health anxiety, cancer information overload and death anxiety in caregivers of inpatient cancer patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 92 inpatient cancer patients' caregivers were included the study. A sociodemographic information form, Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety (ASDA), Health Anxiety Scale (HAS), Cancer Information Overload Scale (CIO) were given to participants to respond. RESULTS: Participants with high HAS scores were compared with those with low HAS scores; the rate of employed persons was less (n=16, 34.8% vs. n=30, 65.2%, p=0.006), income status was more likely to be very low/low (n=23, 50.0% vs. n=6, 13.0%, p<0.001) and research on cancer was more common (n=39, 84.8%, p<0.001). Median (IQR) CIO [24.0 (21.75-28.0) vs. 13.5 (11.0-18.25), p<0.001] and ASDA total [69.0 (62.0-77.0) vs. 41.0 (33.75-58.0), p<0.001] scores were higher in the group with high HAS score than in the group with low HAS score. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that a moderate/high-income status [odds ratio (OR) 0.114, 0.013-0.986 95% confidence interval (CI), p=0.049], CIO score (OR 1.354, 1.106-1.658 95% CI, p=0.003) and ASDA total score (OR 1.079, 1.021-1.141 95% CI, p=0.007) were independent predictive factors for a high HAS score. CONCLUSIONS: Death anxiety and CIO are crucial determinants of health anxiety. More research in multi-dimensional design is needed to obtain additional information about the relationship between death anxiety, CIO and health anxiety.
Subject(s)
Anxiety , Neoplasms , Humans , Anxiety/epidemiology , Neoplasms/psychologyABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Medication non-adherence is the leading preventable cause of death among cancer patients. We aimed at investigating whether an online search on cancer treatments creates information overload and to determine the effect of online search on treatment adherence in postmenopausal breast cancer (BC) patients receiving adjuvant aromatase inhibitor (AI) treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 103 patients completed the demographic and medical information form, Cancer Information Overload (CIO) scale, Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS), and Modified Medication Adherence Questionnaire (MAQ). RESULTS: More than half of the patients (n=55, 53.4%) performed an additional online search on BC treatment. Median HADS-Anxiety scores, HADS-Depression scores, CIO scores, and percentage of patients with a low MAQ status were 10.00 (7.00-13.00) and 4.00 (3.00-6.75) (p<0.001), 11.00 (6.00-14.00) and 4.00 (2.00-6.00) (p<0.001), 24.00 (17.00-28.00) and 12.00 (10.00-15.00) (p<0.001), and 63.6% (n=35) and 39.6% (n=19) (p=0.018) for the searcher and non-searcher groups, respectively. Co-morbidity(s) (OR 2.407, 95% CI 1.017-5.700, p=0.046) and CIO score (OR 1.126, 95% CI 1.006-1.259, p=0.039) were independent predictive factors of a low MAQ score. CONCLUSIONS: CIO is one of the main determinants of non-adherence to adjuvant AI treatment. An additional online search on cancer treatment may negatively contribute to patients' CIO, depression, and anxiety levels and does not seem to be beneficial for treatment adherence.
