The Impact of Ethnicity, Language, and Anxiety on Quality of Life in Children with Cancer

Aditi Wahi, Michael Phelan, Sandra Sherman-Bien, Leonard S. Sender and Michelle A. Fortier ()
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Aditi Wahi: University of California-Irvine
Michael Phelan: University of California-Irvine
Sandra Sherman-Bien: Miller Children’s Hospital
Leonard S. Sender: University of California-Irvine
Michelle A. Fortier: University of California-Irvine

Applied Research in Quality of Life, 2016, vol. 11, issue 3, No 11, 817-836

Abstract: Abstract Undergoing cancer treatment significantly impacts quality of life (QOL). This study evaluated the role of anxiety, ethnicity, and language on QOL in children with a cancer diagnosis. Participants included 156 parent–child dyads in 3 groups: English-speaking Hispanic, Spanish-speaking Hispanic, and English-speaking non-Hispanic White. Parents completed measures of self-reported anxiety and their children’s perceived QOL. Children completed self-reported measures of anxiety and QOL. Families in which parents primarily spoke English reported higher parent-reported generic-module QOL (p = 0.0062), higher parent-reported cancer-specific QOL (p = 0.004), lower parent trait anxiety (p = 0.0005)), and lower child trait anxiety (p = 0.013), compared to families in which parents primarily spoke Spanish. Regression analyses were strongly supportive of a mediational role of parent trait anxiety in the association of ethnicity/language and parent-reported QOL. The results of this study suggest that children of Spanish-speaking parents may be at greater risk of decreased quality of life, as a function of increased parental anxiety.

Keywords: Pediatric oncology; Quality of life; Anxiety; Ethnicity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1007/s11482-015-9399-6

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