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Journal of Pediatric Psychology Advance Access originally published online on June 12, 2007
Journal of Pediatric Psychology 2007 32(8):1018-1023; doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsm038
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© The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Brief Report: Post-traumatic Stress During Emerging Adulthood in Survivors of Pediatric Cancer

Cynthia A. Gerhardt, PhD1, Justin M. Yopp, PhD1, Lindsay Leininger, BA1, Kristin S. Valerius, MA2, Judy Correll, RN, CPNP3, Kathryn Vannatta, PhD1 and Robert B. Noll, PhD4

1Center for Biobehavioral Health, Columbus Children's Research Institute and The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 2Section of Developmental and Behavioral Sciences, Children's Mercy Hospital, 3Division of Hematology/Oncology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, and 4Child Development Unit, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

All address correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Cynthia A. Gerhardt, PhD, Columbus Children's Research Institute, Center for Biobehavioral Health, Rm. G362, 700 Children's Drive, Columbus, OH 43205-2696. E-mail: gerhardc{at}ccri.net.


  Abstract

Objective To examine post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and disorder (PTSD) among survivors of childhood cancer and comparison peers during the transition to emerging adulthood. Method From elementary and middle school, we prospectively followed a cohort of 56 cancer survivors, 60 comparison peers, and their parents. Assessments were completed after the youth's 18th birthday using questionnaires and a semi-structured psychiatric interview. Healthcare providers rated treatment severity and late effects. Results Survivors and comparison peers did not differ on rates of PTSS or PTSD, but comparison peers reported more dissociative experiences than survivors. Late effects were associated with a greater number of past PTSS. Of the 16 cancer survivors who reported a traumatic event, five (31%) were cancer-related. Conclusions Levels of PTSS were similar for survivors and comparison peers. Research with other potentially traumatic diseases or treatments (e.g., amputations, brain tumors) is needed. The role of methodology and contextual factors in the assessment of PTSS/PTSD is discussed.

Key words: adjustment; adolescents, neoplasms; post-traumatic stress.

This project was supported in part by a grant from the American Cancer Society (PF-99-270-01-PBP). Portions of this article were presented at the Annual Meeting and Scientific Sessions of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, Boston, MA, April 2005 and the Great Lakes Regional Conference on Child Health, Columbus, OH, April 2005.

Received December 13, 2006; revision received February 27, 2007; accepted April 19, 2007


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S. Manne
Commentary: Adopting to a Broad Perspective on Posttraumatic Stress Disorders, Childhood Medical Illness and Injury
J. Pediatr. Psychol., January 1, 2009; 34(1): 22 - 26.
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