Fear of cancer recurrence and death anxiety: unaddressed concerns for adult neuro-oncology patients
Open accessAbstract
Primary brain tumor (PBT) patients may experience existential distress; however, few studies have examined this issue. The objectives of this study were to (1) systematically review PBT representation in psycho-oncology literature regarding fear/anxiety related to progression, recurrence, and death and (2) preliminarily assess the prevalence of fear of dying in a sample of PBT patients. Systematic searching of three databases yielded 1555 articles for review. Of these, 327 studies met inclusion criteria (patient sample N = 132,951). Only eight studies (0.18% of the participants) included patients with a PBT diagnosis, potentially due to exclusion criteria such as cognitive impairment or specific treatment parameters which may prohibit PBT patient participation. Review of the results from the eight included studies revealed mixed methods and limited demographic analyses; existential distress was correlated with heightened depression and anxiety, and overall worsened quality of life. From the original data collection, approximately one-third of PBT patients endorsed fear of dying, which was positively related to depression severity. Taken together, results suggest that PBT patients are considerably underrepresented in existential psycho-oncology literature, despite preliminary findings suggesting prevalence of these concerns. Future research on existential distress in neuro-oncology is warranted.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Death anxiety is influenced by the physical and psychological conditions of patients with cancer.
“DA is influenced by the physical and psychological conditions of patients with cancer7”
From Psychological adjustment to death anxiety: a qualitative study of Chinese patients with advanced cancer (2024) · cites this paper as [7]
The systematic review’s Results report that death anxiety in patients with primary brain tumors is associated with depression and anxiety, and that patients taking anticonvulsants reported greater fear of death. But it found no association with functional status or treatment history, and the paper does not establish that physical and psychological conditions cause death anxiety across patients with cancer generally. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
American Psychiatric Association (2013) · doi:10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596 · Cited by 116,369 · see citing works
Liberati, A., Altman, D. G., Tetzlaff, J., Mulrow, C., Gøtzsche, P. C., Ioannidis, J. P. A., Clarke, M., Devereaux, P. J., Kleijnen, J., & Moher, D. (2009) · PLoS Medicine · doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000100 · Cited by 28,164 · see citing works
Dermyshi, E., Wang, Y., Yan, C., Hong, W., Qiu, G., Gong, X., & Zhang, T. (2017) · Neonatology · doi:10.1159/000454668 · Cited by 24,577 · see citing works
Aaronson, N. K., Ahmedzai, S., Bergman, B., Bullinger, M., Cull, A., Duez, N. J., Filiberti, A., Flechtner, H., Fleishman, S. B., Haes, J. C. J. M. D., et al. (1993) · JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute · doi:10.1093/jnci/85.5.365 · Cited by 16,005 · see citing works
An inventory for measuring clinical anxiety: Psychometric properties.
Beck, A. T., Epstein, N., Brown, G., & Steer, R. A. (1988) · Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-006x.56.6.893 · Cited by 14,407 · see citing works
Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based approach.
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.56.2.267 · Cited by 11,682 · see citing works
Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based approach.
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.56.2.267 · Cited by 11,507 · see citing works
Liberati, A., Altman, D. G., Tetzlaff, J., Mulrow, C., Gøtzsche, P. C., Ioannidis, J. P. A., Clarke, M., Devereaux, P. J., Kleijnen, J., & Moher, D. (2009) · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2009.06.006 · Cited by 10,578 · see citing works
(1968) · American Association of Industrial Nurses Journal · doi:10.1177/216507996801601208 · Cited by 8,811 · see citing works
The posttraumatic growth inventory: measuring the positive legacy of trauma
Tedeschi, R. G., & Calhoun, L. G. (1996) · Journal of Traumatic Stress · doi:10.1002/jts.2490090305 · Cited by 7,061 · see citing works
Robins, R. W., Hendin, H. M., & Trzesniewski, K. H. (2001) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167201272002 · Cited by 3,041 · see citing works
The construction and validation of a death anxiety scale
Templer, D. I. (1970) · The Journal of General Psychology · doi:10.1080/00221309.1970.9920634 · Cited by 1,421 · see citing works
Screening for Depression in Adults: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement
Siu, A. L., and the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), Bibbins-Domingo, K., Grossman, D. C., Baumann, L. C., Davidson, K. W., Ebell, M., García, F. A. R., Gillman, M., Herzstein, J., et al. (2016) · JAMA · doi:10.1001/jama.2015.18392 · Cited by 1,407 · see citing works
Clinical diagnosis of depression in primary care: a meta-analysis
Mitchell, A. J., Vaze, A., & Rao, S. (2009) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(09)60879-5 · Cited by 1,251 · see citing works
Anxiety and depression after cancer diagnosis: Prevalence rates by cancer type, gender, and age
Linden, W., Vodermaier, A., MacKenzie, R., & Greig, D. (2012) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2012.03.025 · Cited by 1,245 · see citing works
Two Decades of Terror Management Theory: A Meta-Analysis of Mortality Salience Research
Burke, B. L., Martens, A., & Faucher, E. H. (2010) · Personality and Social Psychology Review · doi:10.1177/1088868309352321 · Cited by 1,188 · see citing works
Quality of Life in Long-Term, Disease-Free Survivors of Breast Cancer: a Follow-up Study
Ganz, P. A. (2002) · JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute · doi:10.1093/jnci/94.1.39 · Cited by 1,059 · see citing works
Depression: A Global Public Health Concern
Marcus, M., Yasamy, M. T., van Ommeren, M., Chisholm, D., & Saxena, S. (2012) · PsycEXTRA Dataset · doi:10.1037/e517532013-004 · Cited by 997 · see citing works
Validity of a single-item measure of stress symptoms
Elo, A.-L., Leppänen, A., & Jahkola, A. (2003) · Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.752 · Cited by 900 · see citing works
Psychiatric morbidity and its recognition by doctors in patients with cancer
Fallowfield, L., Ratcliffe, D., Jenkins, V, & Saul, J. (2001) · British Journal of Cancer · doi:10.1054/bjoc.2001.1724 · Cited by 694 · see citing works
Hidden morbidity in cancer: spouse caregivers
Braun, M., Mikulincer, M., Rydall, A., Walsh, A., & Rodin, G. (2007) · Journal of Clinical Oncology · doi:10.1200/jco.2006.10.0909 · Cited by 526 · see citing works
Koch, L., Jansen, L., Brenner, H., & Arndt, V. (2013) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/pon.3022 · Cited by 511 · see citing works
Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct
Iverach, L., Menzies, R. G., & Menzies, R. E. (2014) · Clinical Psychology Review · doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2014.09.002 · Cited by 459 · see citing works
Staring at the sun: Overcoming the terror of death.
Yalom, I. D. (2008) · The Humanistic Psychologist · doi:10.1080/08873260802350006 · Cited by 423 · see citing works
Pelletier, G., Verhoef, M. J., Khatri, N., & Hagen, N. (2002) · Journal of Neuro-Oncology · doi:10.1023/a:1015728825642 · Cited by 362 · see citing works
Depression and degree of acceptance of adjuvant cytotoxic drugs
Colleoni, M., Mandala, M., Peruzzotti, G., Robertson, C., Bredart, A., & Goldhirsch, A. (2000) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(00)02821-x · Cited by 351 · see citing works
Prieto, J. M., Blanch, J., Atala, J., Carreras, E., Rovira, M., Cirera, E., & Gastó, C. (2002) · Journal of Clinical Oncology · doi:10.1200/jco.2002.07.101 · Cited by 330 · see citing works
Spirituality and well‐being in cancer patients: a review
Visser, A., Garssen, B., & Vingerhoets, A. (2010) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/pon.1626 · Cited by 320 · see citing works
Quality of life, self‐esteem and worries in young adult survivors of childhood cancer
Langeveld, N. E., Grootenhuis, M. A., Voûte, P. A., de Haan, R. J., & van den Bos, C. (2004) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/pon.800 · Cited by 304 · see citing works
Quality of life in lung cancer patients
Montazeri, A., Milroy, R., Hole, D. J., McEwen, J., & Gillis, C. R. (2001) · Lung Cancer · doi:10.1016/s0169-5002(00)00179-3 · Cited by 290 · see citing works
Quality of life in childhood cancer survivors
Zebrack, B., & Chesler, M. A. (2002) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/pon.569 · Cited by 257 · see citing works
Koch, L., Bertram, H., Eberle, A., Holleczek, B., Schmid-Höpfner, S., Waldmann, A., Zeissig, S. R., Brenner, H., & Arndt, V. (2014) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/pon.3452 · Cited by 253 · see citing works
Fear of cancer recurrence: specific profiles and nature of intrusive thoughts
Simard, S., Savard, J., & Ivers, H. (2010) · Journal of Cancer Survivorship · doi:10.1007/s11764-010-0136-8 · Cited by 229 · see citing works
van Vulpen, M., Kal, H. B., TAPHOORN, M. J. B., et al. (2002) · Oncology Reports · doi:10.3892/or.9.4.683 · Cited by 218 · see citing works
Laubmeier, K. K., Zakowski, S. G., & Bair, J. P. (2004) · International Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1207/s15327558ijbm1101_6 · Cited by 213 · see citing works
Death anxiety in brain tumour patients and their spouses
Adelbratt, S., & Strang, P. M. (2000) · Palliative Medicine · doi:10.1191/026921600701536426 · Cited by 181 · see citing works
Depressive symptoms and quality of life in home-care-assisted cancer patients
Grassi, L. G., Indelli, M., Marzola, M., Maestri, A., Santini, A., Piva, E., & Boccalon, M. (1996) · Journal of Pain and Symptom Management · doi:10.1016/s0885-3924(96)00181-9 · Cited by 170 · see citing works
Re-creating your life: a spiritual/psychotherapeutic intervention for people diagnosed with cancer
Cole, B. S., & Pargäment, K. I. (1999) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/(sici)1099-1611(199909/10)8:5 · Cited by 160 · see citing works
Toward a comprehensive model of death anxiety
Tomer, A., & Eliason, G. T. (1996) · Death Studies · doi:10.1080/07481189608252787 · Cited by 151 · see citing works
Herschbach, P., & Dinkel, A. (2013) · Recent results in cancer research/Recent Results in Cancer Research · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-40187-9_2 · Cited by 146 · see citing works
Sterckx, W., Coolbrandt, A., de Casterlé, B. D., den Heede, K. V., Decruyenaere, M., Borgenon, S., Mees, A., & Clément, P. M. (2012) · European Journal of Oncology Nursing · doi:10.1016/j.ejon.2012.04.006 · Cited by 139 · see citing works
Ellis, J., Lin, J., Walsh, A., Lo, C., Shepherd, F. A., Moore, M., Li, M., Gagliese, L., Zimmermann, C., & Rodin, G. (2009) · Journal of Clinical Oncology · doi:10.1200/jco.2007.15.4864 · Cited by 128 · see citing works
The factors contributing to death anxiety in cancer patients
Gonen, G., Kaymak, S. U., Cankurtaran, E. S., Karslioglu, E. H., Ozalp, E., & Soygur, H. (2012) · Journal of Psychosocial Oncology · doi:10.1080/07347332.2012.664260 · Cited by 124 · see citing works
Deconstructing spiritual well‐being: existential well‐being and HRQOL in cancer survivors
Edmondson, D. E., Park, C. L., Blank, T., Fenster, J. R., & Mills, M. A. (2007) · Psycho-Oncology · doi:10.1002/pon.1197 · Cited by 124 · see citing works
Lo, C., Hales, S., Zimmermann, C., Gagliese, L., Rydall, A., & Rodin, G. (2011) · Journal of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology · doi:10.1097/mph.0b013e318230e1fd · Cited by 124 · see citing works
Humphris, G. M., Watson, E. K., Sharpe, M., & Özakinci, G. (2018) · Health and Quality of Life Outcomes · doi:10.1186/s12955-018-0850-x · Cited by 124 · see citing works
Determinants of death anxiety in patients with advanced cancer
Neel, C., Lo, C., Rydall, A., Hales, S., & Rodin, G. (2015) · BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care · doi:10.1136/bmjspcare-2012-000420 · Cited by 114 · see citing works
Existential support in brain tumour patients and their spouses
Strang, S., Strang, P. M., & Ternestedt, B. (2001) · Supportive Care in Cancer · doi:10.1007/s005200100258 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
Lo, C., Hales, S., Chiu, A., Panday, T., Malfitano, C., Jung, J., Rydall, A., Li, M., Nissim, R., Zimmermann, C., et al. (2019) · BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care · doi:10.1136/bmjspcare-2015-000866 · Cited by 87 · cited 1× · see citing works
“For example, Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully, a psychotherapy for advanced cancer patients and their caregivers, has been shown to be effective when delivered by providers from several disciplines (e.g., psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and nurses; Lo et al., 2016).”
BackgroundANXIETY AND DEATH ANXIETY IN EGYPTIAN AND SPANISH NURSING STUDENTS
Abdel‐Khalek, A. M., & Tomás‐Sábado, J. (2005) · Death Studies · doi:10.1080/07481180590906174 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
Budrukkar, A. N., Jalali, R., Dutta, D., et al. (2009) · Journal of Neuro-Oncology · doi:10.1007/s11060-009-9939-8 · Cited by 80 · see citing works
Screening for Depression in Adults
Pignone, M. P., Gaynes, B. N., Lohr, K. N., Rushton, J. L., & Mulrow, C. D. (2003) · Annals of Internal Medicine · doi:10.7326/0003-4819-138-9-200305060-00019 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
Fear of Death and Good Death Among the Young and Elderly with Terminal Cancers in Taiwan
Tsai, J.-S., Wu, C.-H., Chiu, T.-Y., Hu, W.-Y., & Chen, C.-Y. (2005) · Journal of Pain and Symptom Management · doi:10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2004.07.013 · Cited by 68 · see citing works
Death Anxiety and Cancer-Related Stigma: A Terror Management Analysis
Mosher, C. E., & Danoff‐Burg, S. (2007) · Death Studies · doi:10.1080/07481180701603360 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
How was life after treatment of a malignant brain tumour?
Salander, P., Bergenheim, A. T., & Henriksson, R. (2000) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/s0277-9536(00)00002-2 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
The Quality of Life of Patients with Malignant Gliomas and Their Caregivers
Muñoz, C., Juarez, G., Muñoz, M. L., Portnow, J., Fineman, I., Badie, B., Mamelak, A. N., & FERRELL, B. R. (2008) · Social Work in Health Care · doi:10.1080/00981380802232396 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Validity of the Fear of Progression Questionnaire‐Short Form in patients with systemic sclerosis
Kwakkenbos, L., van den Hoogen, F. H. J., Custers, J. A. E., Prins, J. B., Vonk, M. C., van Lankveld, W. G. J. M., Becker, E. S., & van den Ende, C. H. M. (2012) · Arthritis Care & Research · doi:10.1002/acr.21618 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Engelmann, D., Scheffold, K., Friedrich, M., Hartung, T. J., Schulz‐Kindermann, F., Lordick, F., Schilling, G., Lo, C., Rodin, G., & Mehnert, A. (2016) · Journal of Pain and Symptom Management · doi:10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2016.07.002 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Cho, D., & Park, C. L. (2016) · Journal of Psychosocial Oncology · doi:10.1080/07347332.2016.1247408 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
The Death Distress Construct and Scale
Abdel‐Khalek, A. M. (2011) · OMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying · doi:10.2190/om.64.2.e · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Symptom burden and integrative medicine in cancer survivorship
Cutshall, S. M., Cha, S. S., Ness, S. M., Stan, D. L., Christensen, S. A., Bhagra, A., Price, K. A. R., Thompson, C. A., Hashmi, S. K., Chon, T. Y., et al. (2015) · Supportive Care in Cancer · doi:10.1007/s00520-015-2666-0 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Lehto, R. H. (2012) · Clinical journal of oncology nursing · doi:10.1188/12.cjon.e1-e8 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Development of a Concise QOL Questionnaire for Brain Tumor Patients
Goffaux, P., Boudrias, M., Mathieu, D., Charpentier, C., Veilleux, N., & Fortin, D. (2009) · Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences / Journal Canadien des Sciences Neurologiques · doi:10.1017/s0317167100007095 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Hanly, C. M. T. (1983) · The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease · doi:10.1097/00005053-198309000-00018 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 4
- Beck AT, & Steer RA (1993). BAI, Beck anxiety inventory: Manual (1993rd ed.). San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation.
- Beck AT, Steer RA, & Brown GK (1996). BDI-II, Beck depression inventory: Manual (2nd ed.). San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation.
- Gonen G, Kaymak SU, Cankurtaran ES, Karslioglu EH, Ozalp E, & Soygur H (2012b). The factors contributing to death anxiety in cancer patients. Journal of Psychosocial Oncology. 10.1080/07347332.2012.664260. 22571248 · DOI · Paper page
- Heidegger M (1996). Being and time (trans: Stambaugh, J.). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Loughan, A. R., Willis, K. D., Braun, S. E., Rodin, G., Lanoye, A., Davies, A. E., Svikis, D., Mazzeo, S., Malkin, M., & Thacker, L. (2022) · Journal of Neuro-Oncology · doi:10.1007/s11060-022-03988-8 · Cited by 29 · see citing works
“However, despite its relevance for this population, death anxiety is rarely studied as an empirical outcome in neuro-oncology trials [11], and has only recently emerged as an area of psychological concern for glioma patients [7].”
BackgroundSelf-citationTaurisano, P., Abbatantuono, C., Verri, V., Pepe, I., Stucci, L. S., Taurino, A., Moschetta, M., De Caro, M. F., & Antonucci, L. A. (2022) · BMC Psychology · doi:10.1186/s40359-021-00714-3 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Chen, F., Ou, M., Xia, W., & Xu, X. (2024) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2023-080220 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
- Authors
- Loughan, A. R., Lanoye, A., Aslanzadeh, F. J., Villanueva, A. A. L., Boutte, R., Husain, M., & Braun, S.
- Affiliations
- Virginia Commonwealth University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Loughan, Ashlee R.
- Venue
- Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings
- Published
- 2019-12-17
- Volume
- 28
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 16-30
- ISSN
- 1068-9583 (ISSN-L)
- 1573-3572
- PMC
- PMC7461618
- OpenAlex
- W2995258449
- Cited by
- 60
- References
- 64
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 3
- FWCI
- 1.99
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (KL2TR002648, UL1TR002649)
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer survivorship and care
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Palliative and Oncologic Care
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Keywords
- primary brain tumors, fear of cancer recurrence, fear of death, fear of dying, existential suffering, depression, anxiety, quality of life, psycho-oncology
- MeSH terms
- Psycho-Oncology, Systematic Reviews as Topic, Adult, Anxiety, Brain Neoplasms, Fear, Humans, Quality of Life
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
