Cancer information overload and death anxiety predict health anxiety

P. Eraslan, A. İlhan

Presidential Medical Unit, Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic, Ankara, Turkey. drpinareraslan@gmail.com

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• Oncology
• Psychiatry

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the relationship between health anxiety, cancer information overload and death anxiety in caregivers of inpatient cancer patients.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 92 inpatient cancer patients’ caregivers were included the study. A sociodemographic information form, Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety (ASDA), Health Anxiety Scale (HAS), Cancer Information Overload Scale (CIO) were given to participants to respond.

RESULTS: Participants with high HAS scores were compared with those with low HAS scores; the rate of employed persons was less (n=16, 34.8% vs. n=30, 65.2%, p=0.006), income status was more likely to be very low/low (n=23, 50.0% vs. n=6, 13.0%, p<0.001) and research on cancer was more common (n=39, 84.8%, p<0.001). Median (IQR) CIO [24.0 (21.75-28.0) vs. 13.5 (11.0-18.25), p<0.001] and ASDA total [69.0 (62.0-77.0) vs. 41.0 (33.75-58.0), p<0.001] scores were higher in the group with high HAS score than in the group with low HAS score. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that a moderate/high-income status [odds ratio (OR) 0.114, 0.013-0.986 95% confidence interval (CI), p=0.049], CIO score (OR 1.354, 1.106-1.658 95% CI, p=0.003) and ASDA total score (OR 1.079, 1.021-1.141 95% CI, p=0.007) were independent predictive factors for a high HAS score.

CONCLUSIONS: Death anxiety and CIO are crucial determinants of health anxiety. More research in multi-dimensional design is needed to obtain additional information about the relationship between death anxiety, CIO and health anxiety.

 

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