Physical Symptoms, Perceived Social Support, and Affect in Adolescents with Cancer

Abstract

Treatment for cancer among adolescents is often more intense and lasts longer than treatment for older or younger patients. It typically causes pain, fatigue, and nausea and affects social and emotional well-being. This study examined the relationships among demographics, physical symptoms, perceived social support from friends and family, and affect (positive and negative) in 102 adolescents (age 13–19) with cancer using correlational analyses. Additionally, perceived social support was explored as a mediator and moderator of the relationship between physical symptoms and affect using regression. Females reported significantly lower friend support and higher negative affect compared to males. Minority participants were more likely to endorse physical symptoms and less negative affect compared to White respondents. Higher report of physical symptoms was significantly related to greater negative affect, whereas higher perceived social support from friends was related to higher positive affect. Adolescents consistently reported high levels of social support from family and friends. Additionally, adolescents tended to report average levels of positive affect and low levels of negative affect compared to healthy populations. No significant mediation or moderation effects were found. This research highlights that females and minorities, and those with greater physical symptoms, may be more vulnerable to poor adjustment to cancer during adolescence. However, overall this study lends support to the notion that adolescents with cancer are an especially resilient population, as these patients endorsed generally high levels of social support and positive affect, with low levels of negative affect.

Teenage and Young Adult Cancer-Related Fatigue Is Prevalent, Distressing, and Neglected: It Is Time to Intervene. A Systematic Literature Review and Narrative Synthesis

“…30,38,47,49,51 Eleven studies highlighted an association between fatigue and physical symptoms, including poor sleep, 35,37,57,61,74,75 being part of a symptom cluster, 33,70,73 and nausea. 29,61 Almost all participants in the three studies that examined symptom clusters were receiving chemotherapy; 33,70,73 although there was no consistency in the specific symptoms found to cluster with fatigue, the symptoms tended to be chemotherapy-related. While receiving chemotherapy 23,36,44,47,60,66 or dexamethasone 45 both correlated with increasing fatigue, the evidence for a correlation between fatigue and hospital admission 47,60,72 or anemia 46,60 was conflicting.…”

“…Even though patients associated fatigue with ''doing too many things'' or ''being too active,'' 5,23 there was a correlation between improved performance status and lower fatigue scores. 46,78 Depression or low mood correlated with fatigue in five studies; 30,38,59,61,85 negative affect, 29 global distress, 72 anxiety, 33,73 and non-specific psychological conditions 44,72 were identified as correlates in a further five publications. Consistent with the link with physical and psychological symptoms, a high correlation with poor quality of life or satisfaction with life was reported in four studies.…”

“…All were published between 1992 and 2013. The 60 articles encompassed a total of 52 separate studies, as four pairs of articles 23,[29][30][31][32][33][34][35] and two groups of three articles [36][37][38][39][40][41] were publications describing different aspects of the same study's data set. It was decided to handle these as different studies, because of their distinct areas of focus.…”

Providing Children and Adolescents Opportunities for Social Interaction as a Standard of Care in Pediatric Oncology

“…Some adolescents indicate a decrease in or difficulty with social interactions or lack of peer support, whereas others describe an improvement in social relationships due to cancer. Adolescents express feeling socially isolated, disconnected, or different from their same‐age peers, as well as more emotionally mature based upon their changed life perspective . Importantly, adolescents with cancer report unmet needs in peer interaction and support, including a desire for increased access to cancer support programs (i.e., online or in‐person support groups, retreats, and camps) …”

Personal resources and selected aspects of psychological functioning of ill oncological youths

“…Leczeni onkologicznie adolescenci poszukują intensywnie wsparcia społecznego niezależnie od sposobu funkcjonowania psychologicznego. Jest to właści-wie główny sposób zaradczy w tej grupie chorych, związany z poszukiwaniem bezpieczeństwa w relacji z dorosłymi i akceptacji w relacji z rówieśni-kami [69]. U zdrowych młodych ludzi ten sposób radzenia sobie wiąże się z egocentryczną koncentracją i przeżywanym lękiem, co może oznaczać, że sytuacja dyskomfortu emocjonalnego jest dla nich trudna do samodzielnego radzenia sobie.…”