Increased anxiety and depression in patients with gynecologic cancers during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A retrospective study from Japan

Mogami, Tae; Onuma, Emi; Aoki, M; Kamiya, N.; Sukegawa, Akiko; Miyagi, Etsuko; Sakakibara, Hideya

doi:10.1002/ijgo.13470

Cited by 11 publications

(21 citation statements)

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“…with heterogeneous results that are difficult to compare (Agua et al, 2020;Letaief-Ksontini et al, 2020;Lou et al, 2020;Swainston et al, 2020; (Table 5). Most of these studies carried out on cancer patients have detected an increase in perceived levels of anxiety, depression, and global discomfort, highlighting the importance of the emotional sphere in their comprehensive treatment (Agua et al, 2020;Letaief-Ksontini et al, 2020;Lou et al, 2020;Swainston et al, 2020;van de Poll-Franse et al, 2020;Gultekin et al, 2021;Mogami et al, 2021). In our study it is striking how the greatest concern of oncology patients continues to be their tumor-even more than the COVID-19 pandemic itself.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 51%

“…A 24-question semi-structured questionnaire was designed to measure clinical and sociodemographic variables and the exposure level to COVID-19. This questionnaire was designed considering possible risk factors related to elevated rates of emotional distress in cancer patients and based on previous clinical evidence (Agua et al, 2020;Letaief-Ksontini et al, 2020;Lou et al, 2020;Swainston et al, 2020;van de Poll-Franse et al, 2020;Gultekin et al, 2021;Mogami et al, 2021). The HADS (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) questionnaire was used to measure variables related to psychological symptomatology.…”

Section: Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), which make it difficult to compare or extrapolate conclusions (Agua et al, 2020;Letaief-Ksontini et al, 2020;Miaskowski et al, 2020;Swainston et al, 2020;. In this regard, rates of depression and anxiety in cancer patients reported during the COVID-19 pandemic vary widely between 11.8-35.3 and 9.9-69.2%, respectively (Agua et al, 2020;Letaief-Ksontini et al, 2020;Lou et al, 2020;van de Poll-Franse et al, 2020;Gultekin et al, 2021;Mogami et al, 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Emotional Distress in Cancer Patients During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2021

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused mental health problems worldwide. The psychopathological implications of COVID-19 in cancer patients have rarely been addressed. Considering the increased vulnerability of oncology patients, this issue needs to be addressed to improve the long-term mental health status of these patients.Methods: We conducted a prospective study in outpatients under active cancer treatment during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. A semi-structured 24-question survey was designed to measure baseline sociodemographic, psychosocial and COVID-19 exposure characteristics. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to measure psychological symptoms. A descriptive and analytical univariate analysis of the variables studied was performed. We used the Z-score to compare different populations (experimental and historical control cohort).Results: 104 patients were included, the majority of which were women (64.4%), were above 65 years of age (57.7%), had either lung and breast cancer (56.7%), had advanced disease (64%) and were undergoing chemotherapy (63.5%). 51% of them expressed greater fear of cancer than of COVID-19 infection or both.In relation to HADS, 52.8% of emotional distress, 42.3% of anxiety and 58.6% of depression rates were detected. The main factors related with higher rates of psychological symptomatology were history of previous psychotropic drug consumption and the adoption of additional infection prevention measures because they considered themselves at risk of severe COVID-19 infection (p = 0.008; p = 0.003 for emotional distress, p = 0.026; p = 0.004 for anxiety, and p = 0.013; p = 0.008 for depression). Tumor type, stage, oncologic treatment or rescheduling of cancer treatments were not related to higher levels of psychological symptomatology.Comparison of our results with another population of similar characteristics was not significant (Z score = −1.88; p = 0.060).Conclusions: We detected high rates of emotional distress during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic among cancer patients in active treatment (52.8%). This was higher and clinically relevant than observed in a comparable population (42.5%), although not significant. Cancer itself is the main factor of concern for cancer patients, above and beyond the emotional distress generated by COVID-19 pandemic.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 51%

Section: Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Emotional Distress in Cancer Patients During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2021

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“…The findings of this study revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic increased anxiety symptoms in cancer patients, with 61.5% exhibiting symptoms of anxiety. Consistently, several papers reported an increased risk of anxiety for cancer patients during the outbreak, varying from 19.1% in Singapore to 78% in the United States with many countries in between [13][14][15][16][17].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 69%

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Oncology Patients’ Mental Health and Treatment Plans

et al. 2022

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The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted cancer care to a certain degree. There is objective evidence that COVID-19 outbreaks are causing substantial emotional distress among cancer patients regardless of their disease severity. This study aims to measure the levels of psychological distress, depression, and pandemic anxiety among cancer patients in Saudi Arabia during the outbreak of COVID-19 and their impact on patients’ cancer treatment plans. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted among oncology patients in Saudi Arabia in November of 2020. The levels of stress, depression, and anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 outbreak were measured using the Questionnaire for Depression and Anxiety (PHQ-4), and patients were classified as depressed/distressed if the total score was 6 and above and classified as not depressed/distressed if they scored less than 6. Results: Among the sampled population, anxiety symptoms and depression were detected in 61.5% and 70.2%, respectively. Statistical analyses revealed that feeling more isolated was significant for anxiety symptoms (p = 0.005), while patients who used institutions as a source of COVID-19 information had significant depression (p = 0.010) compared to patients who accessed information from other sources. In the binary regression model, feeling more isolated than before was 3.208 times more likely to be associated with anxiety symptoms (OR = 3.208; 95% CI = 1.391–7.396; p = 0.006), while those patients who had a support institution as a source of COVID-19 information were 4.2 times more likely to be associated with depression (OR = 4.200; 95% CI = 1.328–13.280; p = 0.015). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic has added to the burden on cancer patients. The increased risk of anxiety symptoms and depression was clearly demonstrated in this study. Feeling isolated had a greater impact on anxiety symptoms, while obtaining COVID-19 information from a patient support institution negatively affected depression.

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“… 9 , 10 It has been shown that the disruption of medical activity in oncology, in addition to social isolation, fear of contagion, and economic constraints, has an impact on the psychophysical well‐being of cancer patients, with namely symptoms of depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbances. 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 More than 85% of cancer patients said they worried of cancer progression because of COVID‐19 pandemic. 11 Trust and proper communication by the medical team have a positive effect on worries related to the delay or interruption of treatment, but more than 80% of patients stated that they do not think the pandemic has changed treatment decisions by medical staff.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oncological patients' reactions to COVID‐19 pandemic: A single institution prospective study

et al. 2021

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Background The spread of the COVID‐19 pandemic has led to a rapid reorganization in all human and hospital activities, with impact on cancer patients. Aim An analysis of cancer patients fears, and awareness of COVID‐19 has been done in this study. Methods and results We analyzed cancer patients' reactions to the pandemic and their perception of oncological care reorganization, through a 12‐item survey, proposed at the peak of pandemic and 3 months later. Overall, 237 patients were included in the study. During the peak of pandemic 34.6% of patients were more worried about COVID‐19 than cancer versus 26.4% in the post‐acute phase ( p = .013). Although 49.8% of patients in the acute phase and 42.3% in the post‐acute phase considered their risk of death if infected ≥50%, and more than 70% of patients thought to be at higher risk of complications, the majority of them did not consider the possibility to stop or delay their treatment. Patients were more interested in following news about COVID‐19 than cancer and they complied with all preventive measures in more than 90% of the cases. Conclusions Although cancer patients worried about COVID‐19 and evaluated the risk of complication or death due to COVID‐19 as extremely high, they were still asking for the best oncological treatment.

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Increased anxiety and depression in patients with gynecologic cancers during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A retrospective study from Japan

Abstract: Synopsis During the COVID‐19 pandemic, patients with cancer are susceptible to psychological stress, especially during cancer treatment. Timely evaluation is necessary to prevent psychological stress.

Cited by 11 publications

References 5 publications

Emotional Distress in Cancer Patients During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Emotional Distress in Cancer Patients During the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Oncology Patients’ Mental Health and Treatment Plans

Oncological patients' reactions to COVID‐19 pandemic: A single institution prospective study

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