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Psychosocial consequences in offspring of women with breast cancer
Author(s) -
Chan Arlene,
Lomma Christopher,
Chih HuiJun,
Arto Carmelo,
McDonald Fiona,
Patterson Pandora,
Willsher Peter,
Reid Christopher
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
psycho‐oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.41
H-Index - 137
eISSN - 1099-1611
pISSN - 1057-9249
DOI - 10.1002/pon.5294
Subject(s) - offspring , psychosocial , medicine , distress , feeling , breast cancer , cancer , demography , psychology , psychiatry , clinical psychology , pregnancy , biology , social psychology , genetics , sociology
Objective Breast cancer (BC) accounts for 24% of female cancers, with approximately one quarter of women likely to have offspring aged less than 25 years. Recent publications demonstrate negative psychosocial well‐being in these offspring. We prospectively assessed for psychological distress and unmet needs in offspring of BC patients. Methods Eligible offspring aged 14 to 24 years were consented and completed the Kessler‐10 Questionnaire and Offspring Cancer Needs Instrument. Demographic and BC details were obtained. Results Over a 7‐month period, 120 offspring from 74 BC patients were included. Fifty‐nine mothers had nonmetastatic BC (nMBC), and 27 had metastatic BC (MBC) with median time from diagnosis of 27.6 and 36.1 months, respectively. The prevalence of high/very high distress was 31%, with significantly higher scores reported by female offspring ( P = .017). Unmet needs were reported by more than 50% of offspring with the majority of needs relating to information about their mother's cancer. Greater unmet needs were seen in female offspring and offspring with none or one sibling for several domains (practical assistance, time‐out, dealing with feelings, and support from friends; P < .05). Greater unmet needs were seen in regard to feelings for MBC patients' offspring compared with nMBC but were similar for other unmet needs. Conclusions Our study confirms high levels of psychological distress in offspring of BC patients, with female offspring reporting significantly higher emotional distress and unmet needs. More than 50% of respondents reported unmet needs in areas that can potentially be supported, including greater information provision, improving practical issues, and enabling sufficient recreational time.