Department of Epidemiology, University of Iowa College of Public Health, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.
Iowa Cancer Registry - State Health Registry of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.
Oncology. 2023;101(12):808-816. doi: 10.1159/000533408. Epub 2023 Aug 14.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused an increase in fear, anxiety, and depressive symptoms globally. For populations at increased risk for adverse outcomes due to illness, such as cancer patients, these worries may have been exacerbated. Understanding how the pandemic impacted cancer patients will inform better preparation for future events that cause disturbances to cancer care delivery.
This study analyzed data from two surveys to determine whether cancer patients' responses differed from a cancer-free population-based sample in terms of concerns, preventive behaviors, and thoughts on their healthcare provider's communication regarding COVID-19 in a US Midwestern state. In August 2020, a survey was sent to 10,009 Iowans aged 18 and older, randomly selected from the 2018 Iowa voter registration file. In September 2020, a survey was emailed to 2,954 cancer patients aged 18 and older who opted into the University of Iowa Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center's Patients Enhancing Research Collaborations at Holden program. Previously validated and pretested Likert-type and multiple-choice items assessed concern regarding COVID-19, social distancing perception and behaviors, and demographic characteristics of respondents. We used χ2 tests and logistic regression to examine differences between the cancer patient and general population survey responses.
We included 3,622 responses from the general population survey and 780 responses from the cancer patient survey in this analysis. Cancer patient survey respondents were more frequently older, lived in urban areas, had Medicare insurance coverage, had a college degree or higher, and were married. Cancer patients were more likely to report engaging in social distancing behaviors and greater concern regarding the pandemic.
This study suggests differences in the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer patients compared to cancer-free members of the general population. These results indicate the need for consideration of cancer patients' physical and mental health during large-scale disruptions to cancer care.
COVID-19 大流行在全球范围内导致了恐惧、焦虑和抑郁症状的增加。对于那些因疾病而面临不良后果风险增加的人群，如癌症患者，这些担忧可能会加剧。了解大流行如何影响癌症患者，将为更好地为未来可能扰乱癌症护理的事件做好准备提供信息。
本研究分析了两项调查的数据，以确定在美国中西部一个州，癌症患者对 COVID-19 的担忧、预防行为以及对其医疗保健提供者沟通的看法是否与癌症患者以外的癌症免费人群样本有所不同。2020 年 8 月，向年龄在 18 岁及以上、随机选自 2018 年爱荷华州选民登记文件的 10009 名爱荷华州居民发送了一项调查。2020 年 9 月，向年龄在 18 岁及以上并选择加入爱荷华大学 Holden 综合癌症中心患者增强研究合作项目的 2954 名癌症患者发送了一份电子邮件调查。先前经过验证和预测试的李克特量表和多项选择题评估了对 COVID-19 的关注、社会疏远的看法和行为以及受访者的人口统计学特征。我们使用 χ2 检验和逻辑回归来检查癌症患者和一般人群调查结果之间的差异。
本研究包括了一般人群调查的 3622 份回复和癌症患者调查的 780 份回复。癌症患者调查的受访者更频繁地年龄较大、居住在城市地区、拥有医疗保险、拥有大学学历或更高学历以及已婚。癌症患者更有可能报告采取社会疏远行为，并对大流行更加关注。
本研究表明，与一般人群中的癌症患者相比，COVID-19 大流行对癌症患者的影响存在差异。这些结果表明，在大规模扰乱癌症护理期间，需要考虑癌症患者的身心健康。
