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Silva S, Paredes T, Teixeira RJ, Brandão T, Dimitrovová K, Marques D, Sousa J, Leal M, Dias A, Neves C, Marques G, Amaral N. Emotional Distress in Portuguese Cancer Patients: The Use of the Emotion Thermometers (ET) Screening Tool. Healthcare (Basel) 2023; 11:2689. [PMID: 37830726 PMCID: PMC10572115 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare11192689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Cancer patients may experience significant distress. The "Emotion Thermometers" (ETs) are a short visual analogue scale used to screen patients for psychosocial risk. This study aimed to assess emotional distress in a large sample of cancer patients attending psychological services at an non-governmental organization (NGO), and to explore factors that may contribute to it. The ETs were answered by 899 cancer patients. They were, on average, 59.9 years old, the majority were female, had breast cancer, were under treatment or were disease-free survivors, and reported high levels of emotional distress, above the cut-off (≥5). A Generalized Linear Model was used to measure the association between the level of distress, age, gender, disease phase and 33 items of the problem list. Four items-sadness, depression, sleep and breathing-were found to be significantly related to a higher level of distress. Additionally, women and patients who were in the palliative phase also had significantly higher levels of distress. The results confirm the need for early emotional screening in cancer patients, as well as attending to the characteristics of each patient. Additionally, they highlight the utility of the ETs for the clinical practice, allowing to optimize the referral to specialized psychosocial services.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sónia Silva
- Portuguese Cancer League (Central Branch), Rua Dr. António José de Almeida, nº 329—2º Sl 56, 3000-045 Coimbra, Portugal; (T.P.); (N.A.)
| | - Tiago Paredes
- Portuguese Cancer League (Central Branch), Rua Dr. António José de Almeida, nº 329—2º Sl 56, 3000-045 Coimbra, Portugal; (T.P.); (N.A.)
| | - Ricardo João Teixeira
- REACH—Mental Health Clinic, 4000-138 Porto, Portugal;
- CINEICC, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, 3004-531 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Tânia Brandão
- William James Center for Research, ISPA—Instituto Universitário, 1149-041 Lisboa, Portugal;
| | - Klára Dimitrovová
- Comprehensive Health Research Center, CHRC, NOVA University Lisboa, 1150-082 Lisboa, Portugal;
- MOAI Consulting, 1350-346 Lisboa, Portugal; (D.M.); (J.S.)
| | - Diogo Marques
- MOAI Consulting, 1350-346 Lisboa, Portugal; (D.M.); (J.S.)
| | - Joana Sousa
- MOAI Consulting, 1350-346 Lisboa, Portugal; (D.M.); (J.S.)
| | - Monick Leal
- Portuguese Cancer League (North Branch), 4200-172 Porto, Portugal;
| | - Albina Dias
- Portuguese Cancer League (South Branch), 1099-023 Lisboa, Portugal;
| | - Carole Neves
- Portuguese Cancer League (Madeira Branch), 9050-023 Funchal, Portugal;
| | - Graciete Marques
- Portuguese Cancer League (Azores Branch), 9700-171 Angra do Heroísmo, Açores, Portugal;
| | - Natália Amaral
- Portuguese Cancer League (Central Branch), Rua Dr. António José de Almeida, nº 329—2º Sl 56, 3000-045 Coimbra, Portugal; (T.P.); (N.A.)
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