The Pain of Survival: Prevalence, Patterns, and Predictors of Pain in Survivors of Childhood Cancer

• Published in: Health psychology 2021-11, Vol.40 (11), p.784-792
• Main Authors: Patton, Michaela, Racine, Nicole, Afzal, Arfan Raheen, Russell, K. Brooke, Forbes, Caitlin, Trépanier, Lindsey, Khu, Melanie, Neville, Alexandra, Noel, Melanie, Reynolds, Kathleen, Schulte, Fiona
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Biopsychosocial Approach; Biopsychosocial aspects; Cancer; Cancer Survivors; Child; Childhood; Ewings sarcoma; Female; Headaches; Human; Humans; Intoxication; Latent class analysis; Long term survivor; Male; Mental depression; Neoplasms; Neoplasms - epidemiology; Pain; Pain - epidemiology; Pediatrics; Prevalence; Sarcoma; Survivors; Tumors
• ISSN: 0278-6133; 1930-7810
• DOI: 10.1037/hea0001116

Objective: Survivors of childhood cancer experience late effects as a result of their cancer treatment. Evidence for the prevalence of pain as a late effect has been equivocal. This study aimed to describe the prevalence and patterns of pain and biospsychosocial variables that may be related to pain in this population. Method: Survivors of childhood cancer (n = 299; 52.5% male; median age = 16.1[4.6-32.6] years; years off therapy = 9.1[2.0-23.7]) were included. Survivors completed a health assessment questionnaire as part of their long-term survivor clinic appointment (median = 3.0 appointments, range = 1.0-7.0) annually or biannually between 2014 and 2017 (Time 1-Time 4). Prevalence of pain was examined and latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify patterns of pain based on longitudinal reports of pain. Binary logistic regression examined biopsychosocial variables at Time 1 (T1) associated with class membership. Results: Forty-seven percent of survivors reported pain during at least one clinic visit. Headaches were the most prevalent type of pain (26.4%). Survivors of Wilms' Tumor and Ewing's Sarcoma reported the highest prevalence of pain (51.5% and 50.0%, respectively). LCA revealed two clinically relevant profiles: "infrequent or no pain" (74.3%) and "persistent pain" (25.7%). Logistic regression showed that female sex (odds ratio, OR = 2.69, 95% confidence interval, CI [.99, 7.31]), depressive symptomatology at T1 (OR = 2.27, 95% CI [1.31, 3.94]), and drinking to intoxication at T1 (OR = 3.07, 95% CI [1.03, 9.15]), were related to persistent pain. Conclusion: Pain is prevalent among survivors of childhood cancer. Future research should characterize the experience of pain in this population so interventions may be developed. Assessment of pain during regular long-term follow-up appointments is warranted.