Psychological distress in parents of children with cancer: A descriptive correlational study

Caring for a child with cancer necessitates heavy parental involvement, with caregivers having to take their child for frequent appointments, administer medications, and provide emotional support through painful procedures.[1] Alongside trauma and worry elicited by their child’s diagnosis,[2] it is unsurprising that a significant proportion of parents of pediatric cancer patients experience heightened psychological distress during their child’s cancer diagnosis and treatment. Over 84% of American pediatric cancer caregivers were reported to be highly distressed,[3] while 67.6% of the parents of children with cancer in Jordan experienced clinically significant levels of anxiety.[4] Research in other Western[5‑7] and Middle‑Eastern countries demonstrate similar worrying patterns.