Global unmet psychosocial needs in cancer care: health policy.

Unlabelled: Preventable psychosocial suffering is an unmet need in patients with cancer around the world, significantly compromising quality of life and impairing cancer health outcomes. This narrative review overviews the global prevalence of emotional distress and cancer-related needs and the access barriers to psychosocial care. The COVID-19 pandemic has served only to amplify the need for psychosocial care, exacerbating the inadequacy of available psychosocial resources, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

Comparing the experiences of cancer survivors living with sleep disturbances between differing levels of psychological distress: a qualitative study.

Background: Psychological distress often co-occurs with sleep disturbances; but the specific mechanisms linking the two remain unclear. A qualitative study explored perceptions and factors associated with sleep disturbances in cancer survivors between patients with varying levels of psychological distress.

Methods: Thirty-three Cantonese speaking mixed type cancer survivors were recruited from a community cancer care program.

Resilience in the Face of Cancer: On the Importance of Defining and Studying Resilience as a Dynamic Process of Adaptation.

Resilience is defined as the maintenance or relatively quick recovery of mental health during and after adversity. Rather than focusing on psychopathology and its causes, resilience research aims to understand what protective mechanisms shield individuals against developing such disorders and translate these insights to improve psychosocial care. This resilience approach seems especially promising for the field of oncology because patients face stressor after stressor from diagnosis to survivorship.

Return to work, work productivity loss and activity impairment in Chinese breast cancer survivors 12-month post-surgery: a longitudinal study.

Introduction: Existing evidence of returning-to-work (RTW) after cancer comes predominately from Western settings, with none prospectively examined since the initial diagnostic phase. This study prospectively documents RTW-rate, time-to-RTW, work productivity loss, and activity impairment, within the first-year post-surgery among Chinese women with breast cancer (BCW) and identify potential causal co-variants.

Methods: This observational longitudinal study followed 371 Chinese BCW who were employed/self-employed at the time of diagnosis at 4-week post-surgery (baseline).

Factors associated with mental health of young children during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying societal measures have impacted children and their families all over the world. Little is known about the factors associated with mental health outcomes in young children (i.e.

Implementing a nurse-led screening clinic for symptom distress with community-based referral for cancer survivors: A feasibility study.

Introduction: This prospective, single-arm, pragmatic implementation study evaluated the feasibility of a nurse-led symptom-screening program embedded in routine oncology post-treatment outpatient clinics by assessing (1) the acceptance rate for symptom distress screening (SDS), (2) the prevalence of SDS cases, (3) the acceptance rate for community-based psychosocial support services, and (4) the effect of referred psychosocial support services on reducing symptom distress.

Methods: Using the modified Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS-r), we screened patients who recently completed cancer treatment. Patients screening positive for moderate-to-severe symptom distress were referred to a nurse-led community-based symptom-management program involving stepped-care symptom/psychosocial management interventions using a pre-defined triage system.

Exploring the dynamic interconnectedness of protective and perpetuating factors of cancer-related fatigue.

Objective: Approximately 25% of cancer patients suffer from cancer-related fatigue (CRF) after cancer treatment. CRF is a multi-factorial condition affected by several interrelated protective and perpetuating factors. As most studies merely assessed bivariate associations, more insight into the complex relationships among these constructs is needed.

Individual participant data systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials assessing adult mindfulness-based programmes for mental health promotion in non-clinical settings.

Introduction: Mindfulness-based programmes (MBPs) are widely used to prevent mental ill-health that is becoming the leading global cause of morbidity. Evidence suggests beneficial average effects but wide variability. We aimed to confirm the effect of MBPs on psychological distress, and to understand whether and how baseline distress, gender, age, education, and dispositional mindfulness modify the effect of MBPs on distress among adults in non-clinical settings.

Coping with and self-management of chronic painful chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy: a qualitative study among cancer survivors.

Purpose: Patients with chronic painful chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) may experience a negative impact of CIPN on daily life. They can use various coping (i.e.

Experiences of cancer survivors with chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy in the Netherlands: symptoms, daily limitations, involvement of healthcare professionals, and social support.

Purpose: A significant proportion of cancer patients suffer from chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). This descriptive study aimed to examine patients' experience of CIPN symptoms, daily limitations, involvement of healthcare professionals, and social support.

Methods: Cross-sectional data have been collected in the Netherlands via a national online questionnaire comprising closed items only (February 2021).

Patient-centered development of : an online acceptance and commitment therapy intervention for cancer survivors with chronic painful chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy.

Background: Around 30% of cancer survivors suffer from chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) ≥6 months after completion of chemotherapy, which comes with limitations in daily functioning and worsened quality of life(QoL). Treatment options are scarce. Our aim was to develop an online self-help intervention based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to reduce pain interference in cancer survivors experiencing painful chronic CIPN.

Trajectories of sleep disturbance in cancer survivors during the first 2 years post-treatment.

Study Objectives: To examine the trajectories of sleep disturbance in cancer survivors during the first 2 years post-treatment and to investigate whether psychological, cognitive, and physical factors differentiate trajectories.

Methods: A total of 623 Chinese cancer survivors of diverse cancer types participated in a 2-year-long prospective study after the completion of cancer treatment. Sleep disturbance was measured using Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index at 3 (T2), 6 (T3), 12 (T4), 18 (T5), and 24 (T6) months after baseline (within 6-months post-treatment; T1).

Living in the twilight zone: a qualitative study on the experiences of patients with advanced cancer obtaining long-term response to immunotherapy or targeted therapy.

Purpose: The introduction of immunotherapy and targeted therapy has drastically improved the life expectancy of patients with advanced cancer. Despite improved survival, obtaining long-term response can be highly distressing and comes with uncertainties that affect several life domains. The aim of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of long-term responders' lived experiences with obtaining long-term response to immunotherapy or targeted therapy.

Looking at individual symptoms: the dynamic network structure of depressive symptoms in cancer survivors and their preferences for psychological care.

Purpose: The majority of depressed cancer survivors do not receive psychological care, possibly because offered care does not align with their experiences and preferences. We examined (1) which depressive symptoms cancer survivors would like to receive psychological care for; (2) how distinct depressive symptoms are related to each other in the contemporaneous and temporal network of depressive symptoms; and (3) whether survivors' care needs correspond to the interconnectedness of these specific symptoms.

Method: Fifty-two cancer survivors suffering from at least mild depressive symptoms and were not receiving psychological care filled out a baseline questionnaire about their care needs for distinct depressive symptoms, followed by ecological momentary assessments (EMA) assessing depressive symptoms (14 days, five times a day).

Effectiveness of the online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy intervention "Embrace Pain" for cancer survivors with chronic painful chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: About 30% of cancer survivors suffer from chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) ≥6 months after completion of chemotherapy. This condition, for which treatment options are scarce, comes with limitations in daily life functioning and decreased quality of life. The current study examines the effectiveness of an online self-help intervention based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in comparison to a waiting list condition (WLC) to deal with CIPN.

What web-based intervention for chronic cancer-related fatigue works best for whom? Explorative moderation analyses of a randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: Approximately 25% of cancer patients suffer from chronic cancer-related fatigue (CCRF), which is a complex, multifactorial condition. While there are evidence-based interventions, it remains unclear what treatment works best for the individual patient. This study explored whether baseline characteristics moderated the effect of web-based mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (eMBCT) versus ambulant activity feedback (AAF) and a psycho-education control group (PE) on fatigue in patients suffering from CCRF.

Child Posttraumatic Stress after Parental Cancer: Associations with Individual and Family Factors.

Objective: This study aimed to examine the severity of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in children of parents with cancer and to identify individual and family factors associated with these symptoms.

Methods: The sample consisted of 175 children (52% girls, aged M = 11.98, SD = 3.

Return to Work and Work Productivity During the First Year After Cancer Treatment.

Objectives: Working-age cancer patients face barriers to resuming work after treatment completion. Those resuming work contend with reduced productivity arising from persisting residual symptoms. Existing studies of return to work (RTW) after cancer diagnosis were done predominantly in Western countries.

Psychometric Evaluation of the Chinese Version of Decisional Conflict Scale in Chinese Young Women Making HPV Vaccination Decisions.

Purpose: The Decisional Conflict Scale (DCS) is a well-known scale for measuring personal decisional conflict, particularly when a person feels uninformed about the risks/benefits of choices, is unclear about personal values, and feels unsupported in making a choice. Higher scores of DCS indicate higher decisional conflict. In the present study, we aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the DCS among Chinese young women making HPV vaccination decisions.

Personalizing Psychological Care for Chronic Cancer-Related Fatigue: A Case Study on Symptom Dynamics.

Approximately 25% of cancer patients suffer from chronic cancer-related fatigue (CCRF), which is a complex, multifactorial condition. While there are evidence-based interventions, it remains unclear what treatment works best for the individual patient. Psychological network models can offer a schematic representation of interrelations among fatigue and protective and perpetuating factors for the individual patient.