Catastrophizing Maladaptive Coping Affects the Association Between Viral Anxiety and Fear of Progression in Cancer Patients During COVID-19 Pandemic

Lee, Hyuk Joo; Sin, Cheolkyung; Kim, Hyeyeong; Im, Hyeon-Su; Jo, Jae-Cheol; Lee, Yoo Jin; Kim, Youjin; Ahn, Junseok; Yoo, Soyoung; Koh, Su-Jin; Chung, Seockhoon

doi:.0.0.0

Psychiatry Investig > Epub ahead of print

Original Article

[Epub ahead of print]
DOI: https://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2023.0330 Published online November 28, 2023.

Catastrophizing Maladaptive Coping Affects the Association Between Viral Anxiety and Fear of Progression in Cancer Patients During COVID-19 Pandemic

Hyuk Joo Lee¹

, Cheolkyung Sin²

, Hyeyeong Kim²

, Hyeon-Su Im²

, Jae-Cheol Jo²

, Yoo Jin Lee²

, Youjin Kim²

, Junseok Ahn³

, Soyoung Yoo⁴

, Su-Jin Koh²

, Seockhoon Chung⁵

^¹Seoul Dream Psychiatric Clinic, Hanam, Republic of Korea
^²Department of Hematology and Oncology, Ulsan University Hospital, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Ulsan, Republic of Korea
^³Department of Psychiatry, Ulsan University Hospital, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Ulsan, Republic of Korea
^⁴Department of Convergence Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
^⁵Department of Psychiatry, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea

Correspondence: Su-Jin Koh ,Tel: +82-52-250-8978, Fax: +82-52-250-7048, Email: sujinkoh@uuh.ulsan.kr
Correspondence: Seockhoon Chung ,Tel: +82-2-3010-3411, Fax: +82-2-485-8381, Email: schung@amc.seoul.kr

Received: September 24, 2023 Revised: October 26, 2023 Accepted: November 2, 2023 Published online: November 28, 2023
*Hyuk Joo Lee and Cheolkyung Sin contributed equally to this study as co-first authors.

Abstract

Objective
The aim of the present study was to explore whether or not cancer patients’ viral anxiety and depression during the coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic were associated with a fear of cancer progression. We also assessed whether coping strategies affected the relationship.
Methods
The present cross-sectional survey included cancer patients who visited Ulsan University Hospital in Ulsan, Korea. The participants’ demographic information and responses to the following symptoms rating scales were collected: Stress and Anxiety to Viral Epidemic– 6; Patient Health Questionnaire–9; Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire-short version; or Fear of Progression Questionnaire-short version.
Results
Of the 558 cancer patients surveyed, 25 (4.5%) reported that their treatment schedule was delayed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The patients’ fear of progression was found to be related to age (β=-0.08; p=0.011), viral anxiety (β=0.40; p<0.001), depression (β= 0.26; p<0.001), and catastrophizing coping strategies (β=0.15; p=0.004), for an overall adjusted R² of 0.46 (F=66.8; p<0.001). Mediation analysis showed that viral anxiety and depression were directly associated with fear of progression, while catastrophizing mediated this relationship.
Conclusion
Fear of progression in cancer patients was associated with viral anxiety, depression, and maladaptive coping techniques, such as catastrophizing, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Key words Cancer; Anxiety; Disease progression; Depression; COVID-19