RESUMO

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) account for 0.2-3% of all cancer diagnoses and are thus considered a rare type of cancer. Severe levels of fatigue occur in 33% of patients on imatinib, but besides treatment, fatigue is also associated with psychological distress. As far as we know, only one previous study has reported on the design of a psychoeducational intervention for caregivers and patients with GIST. The current study was conducted to compare the preliminary effectiveness of an Internet-delivered cognitive behavioral stress management intervention and psychoeducation program for anxiety, depression, fatigue, and quality of life in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). This study had an experimental pre-test post-test design with a control group. Ninety-nine patients were randomly allocated to an Internet-delivered cognitive program (n = 50) or psychoeducation control group (n = 49). Participants completed the questionnaires at three time points (pre-test, post-test, and 3-month follow-up). Twenty-seven participants completed the intervention. A significant interaction effect between groups and time was found for general fatigue [F(2, 28) = 8.2, p < 0.001, ƞ2p = 0.25], reduced motivation [F(2, 28) = 3.5, p < 0.05, ƞ2p = 0.12], distress [F(2, 28) = 3.4, p < 0.05, ƞ2p = 0.12], and global health status [F(2, 28) = 3.8, p < 0.05, ƞ2p = 0.13]. Both intervention programs showed reductions in the dimensions of fatigue and improvements in distress and dimensions of quality of life. Additional research on a larger sample size is needed to confirm the effects obtained in this study.

Assuntos

Terapia Cognitivo-Comportamental , Tumores do Estroma Gastrointestinal , Terapia Cognitivo-Comportamental/métodos , Depressão , Fadiga/psicologia , Tumores do Estroma Gastrointestinal/terapia , Humanos , Internet , Qualidade de Vida

RESUMO

Background: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) represent 1% of all gastrointestinal tumors and are included in the list of rare diseases. Objective: 1) To evaluate levels of psychological distress, fatigue, and quality of life. 2) To identify the variables that most influence distress among Mexican patients with GIST. Design: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a consecutive sample of 100 patients with GIST, who completed the following questionnaires online: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) as a measure of distress, Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI), and Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ C30). Results: Distress was present in 31% of patients. No association was found between distress and sociodemographic/clinical variables. The patients with distress demonstrated higher scores in all fatigue dimensions and, regarding quality of life, had more symptoms and were lower functioning. Distress was positively associated with all fatigue dimensions and with QLQ C30 symptoms. Negative associations were found between distress and QLQ C30 functioning dimensions. The predictors of psychological distress were general fatigue, reduced motivation, and emotional functioning. Conclusion: The percentage of patients with distress was akin to the levels found in patients with the most common types of cancer. Fatigue in patients with GIST should be evaluated and managed to improve distress levels.