Wassie Yilkal Abebaw, Workneh Belayneh Shetie, Mekonen Enyew Getaneh, Ali Mohammed Seid, Techane Masresha Asmare, Wassie Mulugeta, Kassie Alemneh Tadesse, Ahmed Medina Abdela, Simie Tsega Sintayehu, Aemro Agazhe, Zegeye Alebachew Ferede, Tekeba Berhan, Tarik Tamir Tadesse, Nakie Girum, Fentahu Setegn, Melkam Mamaru, Kibralew Getasew, Tadesse Gebresilassie, Gonete Almaz Tefera
Department of Medical Nursing, School of Nursing, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Department of Emergency and Critical Care Nursing, School of Nursing, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Front Psychol. 2025 Feb 13;16:1379758. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1379758. eCollection 2025.
Cancer is one of the main causes of the most extremely stressful events that can elicit emotional reactions such as depression. Cancer patient caregivers are the most involved members of the oncology team and play an important role in patient's disease management and palliation which may adversely affect their health in the longer run, but many times the caregiver has been overlooked and ignored team. A corresponding systematic review on this topic has not yet been undertaken, even though there have been several studies about depression among primary caregivers of patients with cancer in Africa.
To find studies, we searched databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, Science Direct, African Journal Online, and Google Scholar. A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet was used to extract the data, which were then transferred to STATA version 14 for analysis. The statistical heterogeneity was evaluated by using Cochran's and statistics. To identify publication bias, Egger regression tests and funnel plot analysis were used. Sensitivity and subgroup analyses were carried out.
The current systematic review and meta-analysis comprised all 1983 research respondents from 10 studies. The overall pooled prevalence of depression among primary caregivers of patients with cancer was 47.21% with a 95% CI (31.76, 62.65: = 98.4%). According to subgroup analysis, the pooled prevalence of depression was higher in the studies that used the back depression inventory screening tool (63.95%) (95% CI: 58.76, 69.13). Additionally, we observed a high pooled prevalence of depression in existing studies conducted in Kenya (62.7%) (95% CI: 56.45, 68.95). Finally, a greater prevalence of depression was found among primary caregivers of children with cancer (64.61%) (95% CI: 58.19, 71.03).
The current systematic review and meta-analysis showed that depression was prevalent among primary caregivers of patients with cancer in Africa. The study also highlighted variability in prevalence based on country, method of depression assessment, and population subgroups. Therefore, public health interventions targeting the mental health of caregivers should be promoted. Priority should be given to those who care for children.
癌症是引发诸如抑郁等情绪反应的最具压力事件的主要原因之一。癌症患者的照料者是肿瘤学团队中参与度最高的成员，在患者的疾病管理和姑息治疗中发挥着重要作用，从长远来看，这可能会对他们的健康产生不利影响，但很多时候照料者却被团队忽视。尽管已经有几项关于非洲癌症患者主要照料者抑郁情况的研究，但尚未针对此主题进行相应的系统评价。
为查找研究，我们检索了PubMed、Scopus、Cochrane图书馆、Science Direct、非洲在线期刊和谷歌学术等数据库。使用Microsoft Excel电子表格提取数据，然后将其转移到STATA 14版本进行分析。采用Cochran's Q检验和I²统计量评估统计异质性。使用Egger回归检验和漏斗图分析来识别发表偏倚。进行了敏感性和亚组分析。
当前的系统评价和荟萃分析纳入了10项研究中的所有1983名研究受访者。癌症患者主要照料者中抑郁的总体合并患病率为47.21%，95%置信区间为（31.76，62.65：I² = 98.4%）。根据亚组分析，使用贝克抑郁量表筛查工具的研究中抑郁的合并患病率更高（63.95%）（95%置信区间：58.76，69.13）。此外，我们观察到在肯尼亚进行的现有研究中抑郁的合并患病率较高（62.7%）（95%置信区间：56.45，68.95）。最后，在癌症患儿的主要照料者中发现抑郁患病率更高（64.61%）（95%置信区间：58.19，71.03）。
当前的系统评价和荟萃分析表明，抑郁在非洲癌症患者的主要照料者中普遍存在。该研究还突出了患病率因国家、抑郁评估方法和人群亚组的不同而存在差异。因此，应推广针对照料者心理健康的公共卫生干预措施。应优先关注照料儿童的人群。
