Worse Psychological Profiles Are Associated With Higher Levels of Stress and Symptom Burden in Patients With Cancer During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Abstract

Objectives: To identify subgroups of patients with distinct psychological profiles at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and evaluate for differences.

Sample & setting: Online survey of patients with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods & variables: Patients completed measures of demographic and clinical characteristics, as well as cancer- and COVID-19-related stress, global stress, social isolation, loneliness, financial toxicity, and common symptoms. Latent profile analysis was used to identify distinct psychological profiles.

Results: Among 1,145 patients, three subgroups were identified (i.e., no anxiety or depression and normative level of resilience; high depression, high anxiety, and low resilience; and very high depression, very high anxiety, and very low resilience). Patients with the two worst psychological profiles were younger, more likely to be female, more recently diagnosed with cancer, and more likely to have breast cancer.

Implications for nursing: Findings may assist clinicians to identify patients at increased risk for significant psychological morbidity and provide more timely, targeted, and cost-effective interventions.