Background: Family members dealing with the devastating impact of a cancer diagnosis are now facing even greater vulnerability due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Alongside the already overwhelming trauma, they must also bear the distressing burden of the infection risks. The purpose of this study was to examine and explore the effects in parents of pediatric cancer patients two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to compare these data with the previous data. Methods: We conducted a single-center prospective observational study, enrolling 75 parents of 42 pediatric oncology patients. Four questionnaires (IES-R; PSS; STAI-Y and PedsQL) were given to the parents 2 years after the first evaluation. Results: The bivariate matrix of correlation found a strong significant positive correlation between IES-R and PSS scores (r = 0.526,p< 0.001) as in T1. Stress symptoms (t = 0.00,p< 0.001) and levels of anxiety (trait) (t = 0.32,p< 0.001) remained unchanged; anxiety state levels appeared to have increased (t = 0.425,p< 0.001); there was a significant decrease in the PedsQL tot (t = 5.25,p< 0.001). Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the levels of stress and anxiety of parents and the quality of life of patients, also correlating with the traumatic impact of the diagnosis.
背景：面对癌症诊断带来的毁灭性打击，家庭成员因COVID-19大流行而面临更严峻的脆弱性。在原有巨大创伤之外，他们还需承受感染风险带来的沉重负担。本研究旨在探究COVID-19大流行开始两年后儿科癌症患者父母的心理状况，并与前期数据进行对比分析。 方法：我们开展了一项单中心前瞻性观察研究，纳入42名儿科肿瘤患者的75位父母。在首次评估两年后，使用四份量表（IES-R创伤量表、PSS压力量表、STAI-Y焦虑量表及PedsQL生活质量量表）对受试者进行测评。 结果：双变量相关矩阵显示IES-R与PSS评分呈显著强正相关（r=0.526，p<0.001），此现象与T1期结果一致。压力症状（t=0.00，p<0.001）与特质焦虑水平（t=0.32，p<0.001）保持稳定；状态焦虑水平呈现上升趋势（t=0.425，p<0.001）；PedsQL总分出现显著下降（t=5.25，p<0.001）。 结论：COVID-19大流行不仅影响了患儿父母的压力焦虑水平及患者生活质量，还与疾病诊断带来的创伤性影响产生交互作用。
Psychological Experiences of Parents of Pediatric Cancer Patients during and after COVID-19 Pandemic
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家