Longitudinal Patterns of Social Problem-Solving Skills in an Ethnically Diverse Sample of Pediatric Patients with Cancer and their Caregivers.

Evrosina Isaac,Crista Wetherington Donewar,Jennifer Rohan,Ernest Katz,Anna Muriel,Urmila Sivagnanalingam,Linda Ewing,Andrea Meisman

doi:10.3390/ijerph17051581

Abstract

Pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoblastic lymphoma are prescribed a daily oral chemotherapy medication named 6-mercaptopurine. Adherence to this medication is vital for survival and decreased risk for disease relapse. Adaptive problem-solving strategies are important for adhering to this complex regimen. This manuscript examined ethnic and racial differences in social problem-solving domains (Social Problem-Solving Inventory) among patients aged 7–19 years old who were diagnosed with cancer; and, their caregivers (N = 139). This was a 15-month longitudinal study. We also examined differences in medication adherence based on behavioral adherence measures. Our study found significant differences between minority and non-minority reporters across multiple social problem-solving domains (p < 0.05). However, there were no significant differences observed for medication adherence. Our findings underscore the importance of implementing culturally sensitive interventions in clinical care that could ultimately positively impact health behaviors, interactions with healthcare providers, and long-term health outcomes.

Highlights

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common childhood malignancy with an estimated 5900 cases diagnosed each year [1]
Determining if there are racial and ethnic differences in social problem-solving skills can lead to a better understanding of the disparities seen in health outcomes, which could lead to development of culturally sensitive interventions
Our study found significant differences in child/adolescent-reported and caregiver-reported social problem-solving scores when looking at ethnicity/race categorized as a binary variable

Summary

Introduction

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common childhood malignancy with an estimated 5900 cases diagnosed each year [1]. Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas are the third most common childhood malignancy. Lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL) affects 30% of pediatric patients diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma [2]. Similarities in morphology, genetics, and immunophenotypes between LBL and ALL indicated that ALL and LBL should be considered as. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 1581; doi:10.3390/ijerph17051581 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph

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