Depression and Distress Screening in Oncology Patients: A Descriptive Analysis

This retrospective study aimed to describe the characteristics of cancer patients undergoing depression and distress screening at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center and to assess factors associated with their screening results. Data were retrieved from electronic medical records of adult Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center patients with at least one oncology encounter between January 2021 and June 2022, who underwent both depression and distress screening using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2/9 for depression and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network distress thermometer for distress during the encounter. Demographics, clinical factors, and screening results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression. A total of 1954 cancer patients were screened for psychological needs. Of these, 110 (5.6%) screened positive for depression and 830 (42.5%) screened positive for distress. About 69.1% of patients who screened positive for depression also screened positive for distress. Conversely, 9.2% of patients who screened positive for distress also screened positive for depression. Cancer patients >65 years old were found significantly less likely to screen positive for both distress and depression, while males were found significantly less likely to screen positive for distress. African American patients were found to be significantly more likely than White patients to screen positive for both distress and depression (odds ratio: 2.58; confidence interval: 1:53-4.34). In this study, a higher proportion of cancer patients were found to be distressed than depressed, suggesting that the National Comprehensive Cancer Network distress thermometer may be a more useful tool in identifying psychosocial concerns in this population. Differences in depression and distress scores were significantly associated with age, sex, and race. These findings highlight the need for the implementation of effective screening strategies to better address the psychosocial needs of cancer patients. Further research is warranted to validate these findings and assess the impact of distress screening on patient outcomes across various oncology settings.