Fear of progression in parents of childhood cancer survivors: A dyadic data analysis

Abstract

Objective: Fear of progression (FoP), also referred to as fear of cancer recurrence, is gaining increasing interest in survivorship research as it constitutes a great burden for patients and relatives. However, only little is known about FoP in parents of childhood cancer survivors. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of FoP on quality of life (QoL) in parental couples. Methods: We analyzed dyadic data of 197 couples parenting childhood cancer survivors (aged 0-17 years at diagnosis of leukemia or central nervous system tumor) after the end of intensive cancer treatment. The actor-partner interdependence model calculated by structural equation modelling was used to examine actor effects (effect of one's own FoP on one's own QoL) and partner effects (effect of one's own FoP on the partner's QoL). Results: Eighty-one percentage of the parents reported moderate or high FoP levels. Mothers reported higher FoP levels (p