Psychological symptoms of cancer survivors during the COVID-19 outbreak: A longitudinal study

Abstract

Objective: Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, self-isolation at home was adopted to control the spread of COVID-19 in China for 3 months from 29 January 2020. The psychological status of cancer survivors is affected by their social environment. In this study, we investigated the psychological status and psychological symptoms of Chinese cancer survivors. Methods: A longitudinal study design was adopted, and an online sample of cancer survivors was successfully recruited via the Internet communities of cancer support groups. From 14 February to 25 May, 111 cancer survivor families completed the symptom checklist 90 (SCL-90) online three times (T1:14 to 24 February; T2: 1 to 10 April; T3: 15 to 25 May). Results: For survivors and their family members, the mean total score of the SCL-90 was 172.05 (13.30) and 142.76 (26.80) at T1, 155.91 (12.18) and 133.42 (15.93) at T2, and 142.75 (11.56) and 130.14 (14.16) at T3, respectively. The SCL-90 scores of cancer survivors were significantly higher than those of family members and Chinese norms at T1, T2, and T3. Nine psychological symptoms of the SCL-90 in cancer survivors significantly declined from T1 to T2 and T3. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant adverse impact on cancer survivors and their families. Psychological assistance should be provided to cancer survivors.