Mental Adjustment, Functional Status, and Depression in Advanced Cancer Patients

Adán Rodríguez-González; Verónica Velasco-Durántez; Patricia Cruz-Castellanos; Raquel Hernández; Ana Fernández-Montes; Paula Jiménez-Fonseca; Oscar A Castillo-Trujillo; Miguel García-Carrasco; Berta Obispo; Jacobo Rogado; Mónica Antoñanzas-Basa; Caterina Calderon

doi:10.3390/ijerph20043015

Mental Adjustment, Functional Status, and Depression in Advanced Cancer Patients

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 9;20(4):3015. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20043015.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias, ISPA, 33006 Oviedo, Spain.
² Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital Universitario La Paz, 28046 Madrid, Spain.
³ Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, 38320 Tenerife, Spain.
⁴ Department of Medical Oncology, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Ourense-CHUO, 32005 Ourense, Spain.
⁵ Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital Quironsalud, 41013 Sevilla, Spain.
⁶ Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital Universitario Infanta Leonor, 28031 Madrid, Spain.
⁷ Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital Universitario Clínico San Carlos, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
⁸ Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain.

Abstract

Depressive symptoms are common in individuals with advanced cancer.

Objectives: This study sought to analyze the relationship between physical and functional status and depressive symptoms, and to assess the role of mental adjustment across these variables in people with advanced cancer.

Methods: A prospective, cross-sectional design was adopted. Data were collected from 748 participants with advanced cancer at 15 tertiary hospitals in Spain. Participants completed self-report measures: Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer (Mini-MAC) scale, and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) questionnaire.

Results: Depression was present in 44.3% of the participants and was more common among women, patients <65 years old, non-partnered, and those with recurrent cancer. Results revealed a negative correlation with functional status, and functional status was negatively associated with depressive symptoms. Mental adjustment affected functional status and depression. Patients having a positive attitude displayed fewer depressive symptoms, while the presence of negative attitudes increased depressive symptoms in this population.

Conclusions: Functional status and mental adjustment are key factors in the presence of depressive symptoms among people with advanced cancer. Assessment of functional status and mental adjustment should be considered when planning treatment and rehabilitation in this population.

Keywords: advanced cancer; depression; functional status; health-related quality of life; mental adjustment.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Aged
Cross-Sectional Studies
Depression* / epidemiology
Female
Functional Status
Humans
Neoplasms*
Prospective Studies
Quality of Life

Grants and funding

This work is funded by the FSEOM (Spanish Society of Medical Oncology Foundation) grant for Projects of the Collaborative Groups in 2018 (FSEOM2018) and by an AstraZeneca grant (ES2020-1939). The funders were not involved in the study design, collection, analysis, interpretation of data, the writing of this article, or the decision to submit it for publication.