Reduced Psychosocial Well-Being among the Children of Women with Early-Onset Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 27% of female breast cancer patients are diagnosed before the age of 55, a group often comprising mothers with young children. Maternal psychosocial well-being significantly impacts these children's psychosocial well-being. This study assesses the well-being of children with mothers who have early-onset breast cancer. METHODS: We examined the eldest child (up to 15 years old) of women with nonmetastatic breast cancer (<55 years old, mean age: 40) enrolled in the mother-child rehab program 'get well together'. Using maternal reports on children's well-being (the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; SDQ), we describe the prevalence of abnormally high SDQ scores and identify protective and risk factors via linear regression. RESULTS: The mean SDQ scores of 496 children (4-15 years old, mean age: 8) fell below the thresholds, indicating psychosocial deficits. However, most SDQ scores deviated negatively from the general population, especially for emotional problems, with one in ten children displaying high and one in five displaying very high deficits. Female sex, more siblings, a positive family environment and maternal psychosocial well-being were protective factors for children's psychosocial well-being. CONCLUSIONS: Children of mothers with breast cancer may benefit from improved maternal well-being and family support. Further research is needed to identify appropriate interventions.

Young Adult German Breast Cancer Patients Participating in a Three-Week Inpatient Mother-Child Rehab Program Have High Needs for Supportive Care.

A known cut-off problem hampers the interpretation of quality of life (QOL) scores. The purpose of this study was to apply a novel approach for the EORTC QLQ-C30 instrument to identify the proportion of breast cancer (BC) patients in need of supportive care. Changes in QOL during the COVID-19 pandemic were evaluated, as well as changes over time (after treatment termination and up to 4 years later). Data were obtained from a cohort study on young adult BC patients with minor children participating in a mother-child rehab program. Cross-sectional QOL data were collected from 2015 to 2021 (baseline). Follow-up data were available for up to 4 years after diagnosis for a subgroup. The baseline cohort included 853 women (mean age 35 years). More than 50% had a need for supportive care. In the subgroup with follow-up, this proportion remained at a high level up to several years after diagnosis. During the COVID-19 pandemic, changes regarding the proportion with this need were not as high as expected-with the exception of changes on the QLQ-C30 scale 'role functioning' (+15%). Even several years after diagnosis, every second BC patient with minor children had a need for supportive care, which is much higher than previously found. Healthcare staff should be aware of this potential need and should address this issue.