The mediating role of perceived stress in the association between family resilience and psychological distress among gynecological cancer patients: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Abstract Background Gynecological cancer patients face various stressors and suffer from severe psychological distress. The activation of family resilience supports patients to overcome daily stressors, yet the relationship between family resilience and psychological distress is poorly understood. The purpose of this study is to investigate the degree of psychological distress in patients diagnosed with gynecological cancer, and whether perceived stress mediate the relationship between family resilience and psychological distress. Methods A cross-sectional study was undertaken on 358 gynecological cancer patients in China from September 2021 to November 2022. The participants completed surveys that included the Chinese Version of the Family Resilience Assessment Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Distress Management Screening Measure, and socio-demographic questions. Using Pearson’s correlation analysis to investigate the association between variables, and the bias corrected bootstrapping method was utilized to establish perceived stress as a mediator. Results Chinese patients with gynecological cancer experienced a moderate psychological distress. In addition, psychological distress exhibited a negative correlation with family resilience and a positive correlation with perceived stress in gynecological cancer patients (both P < 0.01). Perceived stress partially mediated the correlation between family resilience and psychological distress (β=-0.182; 95% CI: -0.224 to -0.140; P < 0.001). The total indirect effect value was − 0.182, and the total effect value was − 3.060. Conclusions The findings indicate that higher family resilience and lower perceived stress can reduce psychological distress in gynecological cancer patients, and family resilience also tends to reduce perceived stress in cancer patients. Clinical staff and psychologist should consciously cultivate patients’ family resilience to reduce psychological distress. Meanwhile, identifying potential mediators between family resilience and psychological distress are able to promote the development and assessment of interventions in the future.

Keywords

• Gynecological cancer
• Family resilience
• Psychological distress
• Perceived stress