Emotional functioning during bereavement after the death of patients with advanced cancer and associated factors

Laurien Ham, Heidi P. Fransen, Janneke van Roij, Ben van den Borne, Geert Jan Creemers, Mathijs P. Hendriks, Evelien Kuip, Hanneke W. M. van Laarhoven, Lobke van Leeuwen, Annemieke van der Padt-Pruijsten, Tineke Smilde, Margriet Stellingwerf, Lia van Zuylen, Lonneke van de Poll-Franse, Natasja J. H. Raijmakers

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Objective: The death of a loved one is considered to be the most stressful of all life events. However, the impact of bereavement on quality of life varies between individuals. The aim of our study was to assess emotional functioning (EF), which is a domain of quality of life, of bereaved relatives after the death of their loved one and its associated factors. Method: A prospective, longitudinal, multicenter, observational study on quality of care and quality of life of patients with advanced cancer and their relatives was conducted (eQuiPe). The association between EF of relatives during bereavement and the following factors was investigated: gender, type of relationship, educational level, pre-bereavement emotional and social functioning and global quality of life, social support pre- and during bereavement, anticipatory complicated grief, support of healthcare professionals during bereavement, age of patient and bereaved relative and duration of survival after primary cancer diagnosis. Results: 150 bereaved relatives completed the bereavement questionnaire. In 41% of the bereaved relatives EF was ≤71, indicating clinically relevant low EF. Multivariable logistic regression showed that females experienced more often emotional problems (OR = 2.82). Emotional functioning pre-bereavement (OR = 0.96) and social support during bereavement (OR = 0.97) were associated with low EF during bereavement. Conclusions: Almost half of the bereaved relatives of patients with advanced cancer experienced low EF and this was associated with low EF pre-bereavement and low social support during bereavement. Support for relatives should be initiated before the patient's death. Future research is needed to investigate the impact of such support on relatives' wellbeing during bereavement.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1719-1727
Number of pages9
JournalPsycho-Oncology
Volume31
Issue number10
Early online date2022
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2022

Keywords

  • bereavement
  • cancer
  • oncology
  • psycho-oncology
  • quality of life
  • relatives

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