Speaker
Description
Introduction: Childhood cancer treatment represents a highly challenging experience for the entire family. Changes in daily routines and uncertainty about the future can intensify emotional distress among family members. Objective: To examine the association between life satisfaction and emotional distress among family members of children undergoing cancer treatment. Method: This cross-sectional pilot study with a mixed-methods approach was conducted at the Joana de Gusmão Children’s Hospital in Florianópolis, Brazil. Standardized instruments were used to assess psychological outcomes, including the Subjective Well-Being Scale for life satisfaction, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) for anxiety symptoms, and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depressive symptoms. Correlation analyses were performed using Pearson or Spearman coefficients, with a significance level set at p < 0.05. Results: Thirty-three family members participated, most of whom were female (78.8%), with a mean age of 38.2 ± 9.3 years. The children undergoing treatment had a mean age of 8.3 ± 3.7 years, and 60.7% were diagnosed with solid tumors. Mean life satisfaction score was 3.01 ± 0.32, while anxiety (14.69 ± 5.45) and depression (13.54 ± 7.06) scores indicated a high prevalence of moderate to severe emotional distress. Significant positive correlations were observed between emotional distress and anxiety (r = 0.54; p = 0.001) and depressive symptoms (r = 0.61; p < 0.001), indicating that greater emotional burden was associated with lower life satisfaction. Discussion: These findings highlight the psychological vulnerability of family members during pediatric cancer treatment and emphasize the interrelationship between emotional distress and perceived well-being. Conclusion: Family members of children undergoing cancer treatment with higher emotional distress levels show lower life satisfaction, highlighting psychological vulnerability and the need for multiprofessional mental health support strategies for this population.
Keywords
Personal Satisfaction; Mental health; Caregiver Burdeen; Childhood cancer survivors.
| Abstract submitters declaration | yes |
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| Conflict of Interest & Ethical Approval | yes |
