Caregiver distress in the early phases of cancer

Principal caregivers (PCs) of cancer patients experience high levels of stress that may significantly impact their quality of life (QoL). PCs' QoL during early phases of the disease (when patients were still on chemotherapy) were assessed.

The PCs of all patients meeting the inclusion criteria (chemotherapy, performance status 0/1) treated at our institution between June 2007 and March 2008 were asked to answer a dedicated questionnaire.

One hundred and four PC-patient pairs participated in the study. Most of the caregivers (52%) spent more than 8 h daily caring for the patient, they also frequently reported the occurrence of new psychosomatic disorders, with the most reported symptoms being sleep disruption (24%), headaches (20%) and asthenia (16%). High levels of anxiety and depression were demonstrated in nearly a quarter of the study subjects. In nearly half of the cases, a substantial increase in monthly family expenses and restriction of recreation activities were reported. The overall gravity of the medical situation was perceived as severe by 86% of the PCs.

Demonstrable PC QoL impairment occurs even at early phases of disease, therefore intervention strategies for caregivers should be considered early during cancer treatment.