Anxiety in terminally ill cancer patients

Anxiety in terminal cancer is linked to diminished quality of life, yet overall it is poorly understood with regard to prevalence and relationship to other aspects of psychological distress.

This study examines anxiety in terminally ill cancer patients, including the prevalence of anxiety symptoms, the relationship between anxiety and depression, differences in anxiety between participants receiving inpatient palliative care and those receiving outpatient care, and characteristics that distinguish highly anxious from less anxious patients.

Participants were 194 patients with terminal cancer. Approximately half (n=103) were receiving inpatient care in a palliative care facility and half (n=91) were receiving outpatient care in a tertiary care cancer center. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to assess anxiety and depression, and was administered along with measures of hopelessness, desire for hastened death, and social support.

Moderately elevated anxiety symptoms were found in 18.6% of participants (n=36) and 12.4% (n=24) had clinically significant anxiety symptoms. Level of anxiety did not differ between the two treatment settings. However, participants receiving palliative care reported significantly higher levels of depression and desire for hastened death. A multivariate prediction model indicated that belief in an afterlife, social support, and anxiolytic and antidepressant use were unique, significant predictors of anxiety.

Severity of anxiety symptoms did not differ between the study sites, suggesting that anxiety may differ from depression and desire for hastened death in the course that it takes over the duration of terminal cancer.