The Impact of the Early COVID-19 Global Pandemic on Children Undergoing Active Cancer Treatment and Their Parents

Andrew Tran; Sharon H J Hou; Caitlin Forbes; Sara Cho; Victoria J Forster; Mehak Stokoe; Claire E Wakefield; Lori Wiener; Lauren C Heathcote; Gisela Michel; Pandora Patterson; Kathleen Reynolds; Fiona S M Schulte

doi:10.3390/curroncol30020186

The Impact of the Early COVID-19 Global Pandemic on Children Undergoing Active Cancer Treatment and Their Parents

Curr Oncol. 2023 Feb 17;30(2):2441-2456. doi: 10.3390/curroncol30020186.

Authors

Andrew Tran¹, Sharon H J Hou^{1

2}, Caitlin Forbes¹, Sara Cho¹, Victoria J Forster³, Mehak Stokoe¹, Claire E Wakefield^{4

5}, Lori Wiener⁶, Lauren C Heathcote⁷, Gisela Michel⁸, Pandora Patterson^{9

10}, Kathleen Reynolds^{11

12}, Fiona S M Schulte^{1

11}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Oncology, Division of Psychosocial Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada.
² Department of Psychology, British Columbia Children's Hospital, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1, Canada.
³ Arthur and Sonia Labatt Brain Tumour Research Centre, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada.
⁴ School of Women's and Children's Health, UNSW Medicine and Health, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
⁵ Kids Cancer Centre, Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia.
⁶ Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
⁷ Health Psychology Section, Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London WC2R 2LS, UK.
⁸ Department of Health Sciences and Medicine, University of Lucerne, 6002 Lucerne, Switzerland.
⁹ Research, Evaluation and Policy Unit, Canteen Australia, Sydney, NSW 2042, Australia.
¹⁰ Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
¹¹ Long Term Survivor's Clinic, Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, AB T3B 6A8, Canada.
¹² Department of Medicine, Faculty of Family Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada.

Abstract

(1) Background: The COVID-19 global pandemic has impacted people worldwide with unique implications for vulnerable groups. In this cross-sectional study, we examined the impact of the early pandemic on children undergoing active cancer treatment and their parents. (2) Methods: In May 2020, 30 parents of children undergoing active cancer treatment completed an online survey regarding the impact of COVID-19 on their child's cancer care, perceived utility of telemedicine, and child and parent mental health status. (3) Results: Most participants (87%) reported that they did not experience any changes to major cancer treatments. Among those who reported using telemedicine, 78% reported this to be beneficial. Over half of the participants reported that their child's mental health status was worse now than prior to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Parent-reported child anxiety scores were significantly higher for those who reported changes to mental health care for their child compared to those who did not report the same, t(25.99) = -3.04, p = 0.005. (4) Conclusion: Child and parent mental health status were affected when compared to pre-pandemic. Telemedicine appears to be a promising complement to face-to-face meetings for some families and warrants further exploration.

Keywords: COVID-19; active treatment; mental health; pediatric oncology; psychosocial oncology.

MeSH terms

COVID-19*
Child
Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Neoplasms*
Pandemics
Parents

Grants and funding

This research received no external funding.