Influencing factors analysis of adaptability of cancer patients to return-to-work

Abstract

Objectives: To clarify the adaptability of cancer patients to return to work and explore its influencing factors.

Design: A cross-sectional study.

Settings/participants: From March to October 2021, 283 cancer patients in the follow-up period were recruited from the oncology departments of four secondary and above hospitals and cancer friendship associations in Nantong city using self-developed scale of adaptability to return to work for cancer patients by convenience sampling method.

Methods: The contents included general sociodemographic data, disease-related data, cancer patients' readability to work Scale, Medical Coping Style Questionnaire, Social Support Rating Scale, Family Closeness and Readability Scale, General self-efficacy Scale and Social impact Scale. Paper questionnaires were used for face-to-face data collection, and SPSS17.0 was used for statistical analysis. Univariable analyses and multiple linear regression analysis were conducted.

Results: The overall score of cancer patients' adaptability to return to work was (87.05±20.255), (22.54±4.234) for the dimension of focused rehabilitation, (32.02±9.013) for the dimension of reconstruction effectiveness, and (32.49±9.023) for the dimension of adjustment planning. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the current return to full-time work (β =0.226, P 0.05), the current return to non-full-time work (β =0.184, P 0.05), yield response (β = -0.132, P 0.05), and general self-efficacy (β =0.226, P 0.05) could affect their return to work adaptation.

Conclusion: The results of status quo and influencing factors showed that the adaptability of cancer patients to return to work was generally higher in this study. Cancer patients who had participated in work, had lower yield coping scores and stigma scores, and higher self-efficacy scores and family adjustment and intimacy scores had better adaptability to return to work again.

Ethical approval: It has been approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University (Project No.202065).

Keywords: Adaptation; Cancer; Influencing factors; Return to work.