Associations Between Problem List Items and Clinically Significant Distress in Patients With Metastatic Spine Disease

Retrospective cohort study.

This study aimed to identify sources of distress in patients with metastatic spine disease and elucidate factors associated with clinically significant distress.

Distress is associated with poorer outcomes and lower quality of life in cancer patients. Patients with metastatic spine disease are particularly vulnerable to clinically significant levels of distress. However, specific factors contributing to distress in these patients have been largely unexplored.

We retrospectively reviewed medical records of patients with metastatic spine disease (MSD) who underwent surgery from 2015 to 2023. We analyzed National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Distress Thermometer (DT) scores and Problem List items within 30 days before surgery, which was defined as "baseline" distress. We calculated the frequency of each problem and the proportion of patients with clinically significant distress (DT score ≥4). We used χ 2 tests to analyze associations between Problem List items and significant distress, with a significance threshold of P <0.05.

Among 160 patients with MSD, 48.1% reported clinically significant distress. Patients most frequently reported Physical concerns (93.8%), followed by Emotional (55.6%) and Practical concerns (31.9%). The most common individual Problem List item was pain (72.5%), followed by fatigue (48.1%) and worry (41.2%). Emotional ( P =0.001), Practical ( P =0.04), and Social concerns ( P =0.039) were significantly associated with clinically significant distress, but Physical concerns were not ( P =0.05).

Though physical concerns were most common for patients with MSD, emotional and practical concerns were more strongly associated with significant distress among patients with metastatic spine disease. These findings highlight the need for multidisciplinary care focused on emotional and practical issues to enhance patients' quality of life.