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Factors influencing distress in Indian cancer patients
Author(s) -
Pandey Manoj,
Thomas Bejoy Cherian,
Ramdas Kunnambath,
NandaMohan Vasudevanpillai
Publication year - 2006
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.978
Subject(s) - distress , cancer , psychology , medicine , clinical psychology
Abstract Background : The current study set out to identify distress in cancer patients undergoing curative treatment within India. Patients and methods : This study was carried out to measure distress and contributory factors in 103 cancer patients undergoing treatment with curative intent. The patients were interviewed using the Distress Inventory for Cancer (DI‐C). The data on social, demographic, clinical, treatment, and follow‐up details was collected from case records. Results and conclusion : The distress score for individual respondents ranged from 34 to 90 (mean 62.3). Patients with lower income, those who were single/widowed, or divorced, those living between 150 and 350 km (3–6 h commuting distance) from the cancer centre, presence of pain and patients with advanced tumours at presentation showed higher distress. A higher distress score correlated significantly with patients being lost to follow‐up. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.