Post-Traumatic Stress in Parents of Children with Leukemia: Methodological and Clinical Considerations

Predictors of Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS), Depression, and Anxiety among Caregivers of Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL)

“…The cultural values and belief systems of individuals of 'Other' or 'Indigenous' ethnicity may also affect their perceptions and interpretations of traumatic events, which in turn affects how their child's cancer diagnosis affects them (Appell, 2001). Although mental health is more easily accessible today, individuals with mental health issues are still discriminated in rural communities (Tumin et al, 2022), which may affect how these individuals report their symptoms during mental health assessments. Therefore, apart than SRQs, future studies and healthcare protocols should include behavioural observations and clinical interviews as they provide important insights into an individual's psychological well-being.…”

“…There is growing evidence that the caregivers of children with cancer experience post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS); which is a sub-threshold of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Carmassi et al, 2020;Carmassi et al, 2020). The symptoms of post-traumatic stress include intrusive memories of the child's diagnosis or treatment, intense physiological reactions to illness-related reminders, and avoiding thoughts about cancer and its treatment (Tremolada et al, 2016). Although PTSS can be triggered at any point throughout the course of an illness, the caregivers of children with cancer experience higher levels of PTSS in the initial stages of the diagnosis (Katz et al, 2018).…”