Women with breast cancer taking chemotherapy: depression symptoms and treatment adherence

Objective to verify depressive symptoms and adherence to chemotherapy among women with breast cancer who are served by the Pharmacy of the Chemotherapy Center of a university hospital.METHOD: cross-sectional study with quantitative approach conducted with 112 women receiving chemotherapy. Structured interviews guided by a script addressing socio-demographic, clinical and therapeutic information, the Morisky Test, and the Beck Depression Inventory were used to collect data.RESULTS: 12.50% and 1.78% of the patients experienced "moderate" and "severe" depression, respectively, while 10.59% did not use antidepressant medication. A statistically significant association was found between levels of depression and the use of antidepressants. Lack of adherence was identified in 46.43% of the participants.CONCLUSION: these findings show the need to regularly screen for depressive symptoms and for adherence to chemotherapy treatment among women with breast cancer, in order to provide early detection and appropriate treatment centered on patients, and to improve their quality of life

Social support network, mental health and quality of life: a cross-sectional study in primary care

Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, ES, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sergio Arouca. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade Federal de São Paulo. São Paulo, SP, Brasil.Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos. São Leopoldo, RS, Brasil.Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Campinas, SP, Brasil.Universidade Federal de São Paulo. São Paulo, SP, Brasil.University of Manchester, Manchester, U.K..University of Liverpool, Liverpool, U.K..University of Manchester, Manchester, U.K..Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.O estudo teve como objetivo identificar a associação entre sofrimento emocional e redes de apoio social com qualidade de vida em pacientes de atenção primária. O estudo transversal incluiu 1.466 pacientes nas cidades de São Paulo e Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, entre 2009 e 2010. Foram utilizados o General Health Questionnaire, a Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale e a versão breve do World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument. O Índice de Redes Sociais de Apoio classificou os pacientes com as pontuações mais altas e baixas como sendo socialmente integrados ou isolados, respectivamente. Para cada resultado de qualidade vida, foram realizadas uma análise bivariada e quatro regressões lineares múltiplas. As médias para os domínios físico, psicológico, social e ambiental foram, respectivamente: 64,7; 64,2; 68,5 e 49,1. Na análise multivariada, o domínio psicológico mostrou associação negativa com o isolamento, enquanto os domínios social e ambiental foram associados positivamente com a integração. A integração e o isolamento apareceram como fatores importantes para aqueles com sofrimento emocional, já que minimizam ou maximizam os efeitos negativos sobre qualidade de vida.The objective of this study was to identify the association between emotional distress and social support networks with quality of life in primary care patients. This was a cross-sectional study involving 1,466 patients in the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2009/2010. The General Health Questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the brief version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument were used. The Social Support Network Index classified patients with the highest and lowest index as socially integrated or isolated. A bivariate analysis and four multiple linear regressions were conducted for each quality of life outcome. The means scores for the physical, psychological, social relations, and environment domains were, respectively, 64.7; 64.2; 68.5 and 49.1. In the multivariate analysis, the psychological domain was negatively associated with isolation, whereas the social relations and environment domains were positively associated with integration. Integration and isolation proved to be important factors for those in emotional distress as they minimize or maximize negative effects on quality of life.El estudio tuvo como objetivo identificar la asociación entre sufrimiento emocional y redes de apoyo social con la calidad de vida en pacientes de atención primaria. El estudio transversal incluyó a 1.466 pacientes en las ciudades de São Paulo y Río de Janeiro, Brasil, entre 2009 y 2010. Se utilizaron el General Health Questionnaire, la Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale y la versión breve del World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument. El Índice de Redes Sociales de Apoyo clasificó a los pacientes con las puntuaciones más altas y bajas como estando socialmente integrados o aislados, respectivamente. Para cada resultado de calidad vida, se realizó un análisis bivariado y cuatro regresiones lineales múltiples. Las medias para los dominios físico, psicológico, social y ambiental fueron, respectivamente: 64,7; 64,2; 68,5 y 49,1. En el análisis multivariado, el dominio psicológico mostró una asociación negativa con el aislamiento, mientras los dominios social y ambiental se asociaron positivamente con la integración. La integración y el aislamiento aparecieron como factores importantes para aquellos con sufrimiento emocional, ya que minimizan o maximizan los efectos negativos sobre la calidad de vida