Symptom Burden of Children with Cancer and Parental Quality of Life: The Mediating Role of Parental Stress

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between children’s reported symptom burden and their parents’ quality of life, and whether parents’ perceived stress mediates this relationship. Method: this was a cross-sectional quantitative research study. Convenience sampling was used to recruit 80 pairs of parents and their children with cancer. Advanced statistical methods were used to analyse the mediating effects of parental stress between children’s symptom burden and parents’ quality of life. Results: The results showed that parental stress was the mediator in the relationship between children’s reported symptom burden and their parents’ quality of life. Conclusions: Symptom burden was prevalent in Chinese children with cancer living in the community. Children’s symptom burden is an important factor in predicting parental stress level, which simultaneously and directly lower parents’ quality of life. The evidence in this study enlarges the knowledge base about the mediating effect of parental stress on the association between the symptom burden of children with cancer and their parents’ quality of life. This evidence is crucial in paving the way for the development of interventions that improve the parental quality of life through stress-reduction programs.