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Prevalence and predictors of psychological distress among patients with thyroid cancer during transitional period in China: a cross-sectional study

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Abstract

Objective

This study aimed to explore the psychological distress and its predictors among Chinese patients with thyroid cancer during their transitional period from hospital to home.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted in a cancer hospital in Tianjin, China. A total of three hundred patients with thyroid cancer completed the Chinese version of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Distress Thermometer (DT), Cancer Fatigue Scale, and the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire. Logistic regression was used to obtain the model of predictors of psychological distress among patients with thyroid cancer during the transitional period.

Results

The DT score of 300 patients with thyroid cancer ranged from 0 to 10, and the median DT score was 2 [1–4]. The prevalence of clinically relevant psychological distress (DT score ≥ 4) in Chinese patients with thyroid cancer during their transitional period was 29.33% (88/300). The results of logistic regression analysis showed that gender (OR = 2.505, P = 0.036), fatigue (OR = 1.086, P = 0.005), and illness perception (OR = 1.137, P < 0.001) were significantly related to psychological distress in patients with thyroid cancer.

Conclusions

The psychological distress of patients with thyroid cancer during the transitional period is medium level. Patients with thyroid cancer who are female, easily fatigued, and have worse illness perceptions are more likely to experience psychological distress. Therefore, clinical attention should be paid to female patients and potential interventions aimed at improving fatigue and illness perception. It may reduce the prevalence of psychological distress during the transitional period.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available at https://www.wjx.cn/newwjx/manage/myquestionnaires.aspx. All patient information and other relevant clinical data can be searched through HIS system of Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital.

Code availability

Not applicable.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. Jie Gao and Xin Wang contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin’s Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin, China

    Jie Gao, Xin Wang, Li Zhang, Juan Li, Xuan Qin & Jing Zhao

  2. School of Nursing, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China

    Lan Wang

Authors
  1. Jie Gao
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  2. Xin Wang
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  3. Li Zhang
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  4. Juan Li
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  5. Xuan Qin
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  6. Lan Wang
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  7. Jing Zhao
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Jie Gao, Li Zhang, and Juan Li. Figures were designed by Xuan Qin. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Jie Gao, the manuscript was revised by Lan Wang and Jing Zhao, and all authors discussed the results and commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Lan Wang or Jing Zhao.

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Ethics approval

This study was performed in line with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Approval was granted by the Ethics Committee of Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital (date: December 03, 2020/approval number: bc2020194).

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Informed consent was obtained from all participants in the study.

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Not applicable.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Gao, J., Wang, X., Zhang, L. et al. Prevalence and predictors of psychological distress among patients with thyroid cancer during transitional period in China: a cross-sectional study. Support Care Cancer 30, 7903–7911 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-022-07225-w

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