• Diana C M Seitz, Tanja Besier, Klaus-Michael Debatin, Desiree Grabow, Ute Dieluweit, Andreas Hinz, Peter Kaatsch, and Lutz Goldbeck.
• University Ulm, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry/Psychotherapy, Steinhövelstrasse 5, D-89075 Ulm, Germany. diana.seitz@uniklinik-ulm.de
• Eur. J. Cancer. 2010 Jun 1;46(9):1596-606.

BackgroundTo determine the prevalence of posttraumatic stress, depression and anxiety in adults who have survived cancer (5 years) diagnosed in adolescence, as compared to healthy controls.Patients And MethodsSurvivors (n=820) of cancer during adolescence (age M=30.4+/-6.0 years; M=13.7+/-6.0 years since diagnosis) and 1027 matched controls without history of cancer (age M=31.5+/-6.9 years) completed standardised questionnaires measuring posttraumatic stress, depression and anxiety. Additionally, sub-groups of 202 survivors and 140 controls with elevated scores received structured interviews to ascertain DSM-IV-diagnoses.ResultsA total of 22.4% of the survivors reported clinically relevant symptoms of posttraumatic stress, anxiety and/or depression compared to 14.0% of the controls (odds ratios [ORs] 1.77; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.39-2.26). The odds of posttraumatic stress symptoms in male (OR 3.92, 95% CI 1.80-8.51) and female (OR 3.83, 95% CI 2.54-5.76) survivors were more than three times those in the controls. However, only female survivors reported symptoms of depression and anxiety significantly more often (respectively: OR 2.12, 95% CI 1.16-3.85; and OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.33-2.59) than the controls. A relevant subgroup of 24.3% of the survivors met DSM-IV criteria for at least one mental disorder compared to 15.3% of the controls.ConclusionSurvivors of cancer during adolescence show an elevated risk of presenting symptoms of posttraumatic stress, anxiety and/or depression during adulthood which is also reflected in a greater number of DSM-IV diagnoses when compared to controls. Comprehensive follow-up assessments should include the examination of possible psychological late effects of a cancer diagnosis in adolescence in order to identify survivors needing psychosocial interventions even years after the completion of successful medical treatment.Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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