Prostate cancer-related anxiety among long-term survivors after radical prostatectomy: A longitudinal study

Prostate cancer (PC)-related anxiety is associated with clinically significant declines in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and psychological well-being. This longitudinal study investigates course and predictors of PC-related anxiety in long-term PC survivors treated by radical prostatectomy (RP).

Two thousand nine hundred and three survivors from the multicenter German Familial PC Database completed the Memorial Anxiety Scale for PC on average 11 years after RP at the initial assessment in 2015 and then 5 years later. Hierarchical multiple linear regression was used to assess predictors of PC-related anxiety at follow-up.

PC-related anxiety remained stable over the 5 years. In hierarchical multiple linear regression, longitudinal predictors of PC-related anxiety 5 years later included a lower level of education (beta: -0.035, p = 0.019), biochemical recurrence (BCR; beta: 0.054, p = 0.002), late BCR (beta: 0.054, p < 0.001), PC anxiety at initial assessment (beta: 0.556, p < 0.001), HRQoL (beta: -0.076, p < 0.001), depression and anxiety symptoms (beta: 0.072, p = 0.001; beta: 0.165, p < 0.001). Predictors of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) anxiety 5 years later included late BCR (beta: 0.044, p = 0.019), PSA anxiety at initial assessment (beta: 0.339, p < 0.001), depression and anxiety symptoms (beta: 0.074, p = 0.008; beta: 0.191, p < 0.001), and treatment decision regret (beta: 0.052, p = 0.006).

PC-related anxiety remains a burden to survivors many years after diagnosis and treatment. The respective disease-specific anxiety was the strongest predictor of this anxiety 5 years later, which emphasizes the need of screening and monitoring in a timely manner for PC-related anxiety. Treating urologists should screen, identify, and monitor patients at risk for targeted referrals to psychosocial services.