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Telles R, Zimmerman MB, Thaker PH, Slavich GM, Ramirez ES, Zia S, Goodheart MJ, Cole SW, Sood AK, Lutgendorf SK. Rural-urban disparities in psychosocial functioning in epithelial ovarian cancer patients. Gynecol Oncol 2024; 184:139-145. [PMID: 38309031 PMCID: PMC11179980 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2024.01.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 02/05/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Although rural residence has been related to health disparities in cancer patients, little is known about how rural residence impacts mental health and quality of life (QOL) in ovarian cancer patients over time. This prospective longitudinal study investigated mental health and QOL of ovarian cancer patients in the first-year post-diagnosis. METHOD Women with suspected ovarian cancer completed psychosocial surveys pre-surgery, at 6 months and one-year; clinical data were obtained from medical records. Histologically confirmed high grade epithelial ovarian cancer patients were eligible. Rural/urban residence was categorized from patient counties using the USDA Rural-Urban Continuum Codes. Linear mixed effects models examined differences in psychosocial measures over time, adjusting for covariates. RESULTS Although disparities were not observed at study entry for any psychosocial variable (all p-values >0.22), urban patients showed greater improvement in total distress over the year following diagnosis than rural patients (p = 0.025) and were significantly less distressed at one year (p = 0.03). Urban patients had a more consistent QOL improvement than their rural counterparts (p = 0.006). There were no differences in the course of depressive symptoms over the year (p = 0.17). Social support of urban patients at 12 months was significantly higher than that of rural patients (p = 0.04). CONCLUSION Rural patients reported less improvement in psychological functioning in the year following diagnosis than their urban counterparts. Clinicians should be aware of rurality as a potential risk factor for ongoing distress. Future studies should examine causes of these health disparities and potential long-term inequities and develop interventions to address these issues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Telles
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - M Bridget Zimmerman
- Department of Preventive Medicine and Biostatistics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Premal H Thaker
- Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO, USA
| | - George M Slavich
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Edgardo S Ramirez
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Sharaf Zia
- Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences, University of Iowa Hospital & Clinics, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Michael J Goodheart
- Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA; Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Steven W Cole
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Anil K Sood
- Departments of Gynecologic Oncology, Cancer Biology and Center for RNA Interference and Noncoding RNA, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Susan K Lutgendorf
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA; Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA; Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
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