DUYGU BAYİR GARBİOGLU, ARİF GARBİOGLU, NAZAN DEMİR, MEHMET ERDEM UZUN, MUSTAFA ERSOY, BULENT YİLDİZ, MURAT DİNCER
Eurasian Journal of Medical Investigation - 2021;5(4):448-453
Objectives: Coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID-19) has caused serious anxiety and fear around the world. Anxiety level may be higher in risky and chronic groups such as cancer patients. In our study, it was aimed to evaluate the factors becoming potentially effective on the anxiety status and levels of cancer patients during the pandemic by means of questionnaires and psychiatric scales. Methods: In this study, HADS (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) and STAI 1-2 scales (State-Trait Anxiety Inven tory) were applied for psychological evaluation through a questionnaire to help learning opinions on COVID-19 of 180 patients who were included in consecutively and whose follow-up and treatment continue at university hospital of oncology unit. Results: In the study, it draws attention that more than half of the patients have a fear related to COVID-19. Median hads anxiety score of the patients was found as; 6 (0-18), depression score; 6 (0-17), median STAI-1 score; 38 (25-65), median STAI-2 score; 43 (23-74). In multivariate analysis, the followings were found as the independent risk factors related to the fear of COVID-19; female gender, high anxiety and STAI-2 scores as well as psychiatric disease presence in family and old age. Conclusion: It is known that increased anxiety levels are observed in normal times in cancer patients. In this regard, the rates of anxiety level during the pandemic period in this patient group were found to be higher than the rates in the studies conducted before pandemic period.
