Alotaibi Nawaf A, Alsuhail Abdullah I
Palliative Care, Comprehensive Cancer Center, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, SAU.
Cureus. 2025 May 5;17(5):e83493. doi: 10.7759/cureus.83493. eCollection 2025 May.
Background Depression and anxiety are common psychological challenges among cancer patients, particularly those receiving palliative care. These conditions significantly impact the quality of life but are often underdiagnosed and undertreated. This study evaluates depression and anxiety prevalence in Saudi palliative patients using the Arabic Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), identifies psychological distress factors, and proposes clinical recommendations to improve regional mental health screening protocols in palliative patients. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 130 palliative care patients at King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh. The Arabic version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to assess depression and anxiety levels. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY), with a significance level of p<0.05. Results Sixty-five participants (50%) had HADS for depression (HADS-D) scores of ≥8 (indicating depression), while 40 (31%) had HADS for anxiety (HADS-A) scores of ≥8 (indicating anxiety). Women exhibited higher levels of depression and anxiety compared to men, though this difference was not statistically significant. Pain and fatigue were strongly associated with higher rates of depression (p=0.014 and p=0.002, respectively). Patients with metastatic disease showed lower levels of anxiety (p=0.011). Patients taking antidepressants had significantly higher rates of depression and anxiety (p=0.024). Conclusion The high prevalence of depression and anxiety among cancer patients receiving palliative care emphasizes the importance of implementing a routine psychological screening in oncology settings. The study findings recommend that individuals exhibiting persistent and severe physical symptoms be assessed for possible mood disorders. Contrary to expectations, metastatic patients reported lower anxiety levels. However, this warrants further study to disentangle the roles of coping mechanisms, palliative interventions, and cultural factors.
抑郁和焦虑是癌症患者，尤其是接受姑息治疗的患者常见的心理挑战。这些状况会显著影响生活质量，但往往诊断不足且治疗不充分。本研究使用阿拉伯语版医院焦虑抑郁量表（HADS）评估沙特姑息治疗患者的抑郁和焦虑患病率，确定心理困扰因素，并提出临床建议以改进姑息治疗患者的区域心理健康筛查方案。
在利雅得法赫德国王医疗城对130名姑息治疗患者进行了一项横断面研究。使用阿拉伯语版医院焦虑抑郁量表（HADS）评估抑郁和焦虑水平。数据使用社会科学统计软件包（SPSS）（IBM公司，纽约州阿蒙克）进行分析，显著性水平为p<0.05。
65名参与者（50%）的抑郁量表（HADS-D）得分≥8（表明抑郁），而40名（31%）的焦虑量表（HADS-A）得分≥8（表明焦虑）。女性的抑郁和焦虑水平高于男性，尽管这种差异无统计学意义。疼痛和疲劳与较高的抑郁发生率密切相关（分别为p=0.014和p=0.002）。转移性疾病患者的焦虑水平较低（p=0.011）。服用抗抑郁药的患者抑郁和焦虑发生率显著更高（p=0.024）。
接受姑息治疗的癌症患者中抑郁和焦虑的高患病率强调了在肿瘤学环境中实施常规心理筛查的重要性。研究结果建议，对表现出持续且严重身体症状的个体进行可能的情绪障碍评估。与预期相反，转移性患者报告的焦虑水平较低。然而，这需要进一步研究以厘清应对机制、姑息治疗干预措施和文化因素的作用。
