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Unresolved grief and its consequences. A nationwide follow-up of teenage loss of a parent to cancer 6-9 years earlier.

Bylund-Grenklo, T ; Fürst, Carl Johan LU ; Nyberg, T ; Steineck, G and Kreicbergs, U (2016) In Supportive Care in Cancer 24(7). p.3095-3103
Abstract
PURPOSE: The early loss of a parent is a tragedy and a serious life event. This study investigated grief resolution and morbidity in cancer-bereaved teenagers 6 to 9 years after the loss of a parent to cancer. METHODS: In a nationwide population-based study of 622 of 851 (73 %) youths who as teenagers 6 to 9 years earlier had lost a parent to cancer, we explored the magnitude of unresolved grief and its association with psychological and physiological morbidity. Participants answered a study-specific anonymous questionnaire including questions about if they had worked through their grief and about their current health.
RESULTS: Six to nine years post-loss 49 % reported unresolved grief (8 % no and 41 % a little grief resolution). They... (More)
PURPOSE: The early loss of a parent is a tragedy and a serious life event. This study investigated grief resolution and morbidity in cancer-bereaved teenagers 6 to 9 years after the loss of a parent to cancer. METHODS: In a nationwide population-based study of 622 of 851 (73 %) youths who as teenagers 6 to 9 years earlier had lost a parent to cancer, we explored the magnitude of unresolved grief and its association with psychological and physiological morbidity. Participants answered a study-specific anonymous questionnaire including questions about if they had worked through their grief and about their current health.
RESULTS: Six to nine years post-loss 49 % reported unresolved grief (8 % no and 41 % a little grief resolution). They had, in comparison with youths reporting resolved grief, statistically significantly elevated risks, e.g. for insomnia (sons' relative risk (RR) 2.3, 95 % CI 1.3-4.0; daughters' RR 1.7, 95 % CI 1.1-2.7), fatigue (sons' RR 1.8, 95 % CI 1.3-2.5; daughters' RR 1.4, 95 % CI 1.1-1.7) and moderate to severe depression, i.e. score >9, PHQ-9 (sons' RR 3.6, 95 % CI 1.4-8.8; daughters' RR 1.8, 95 % CI 1.1-3.1). Associations remained for insomnia in sons, exhaustion in daughters and fatigue in both sons and daughters when depression, negative intrusive thoughts and avoiding reminders of the parents' disease or death were included in a model.
CONCLUSIONS: Approximately half of cancer-bereaved youth report no or little grief resolution 6 to 9 years post-loss, which is associated with fatigue, sleeping problems and depressive symptoms. (Less)
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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Supportive Care in Cancer
volume
24
issue
7
pages
3095 - 3103
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • pmid:26899858
  • scopus:84958811749
  • pmid:26899858
  • wos:000376678400033
ISSN
0941-4355
DOI
10.1007/s00520-016-3118-1
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
eec9b06a-22c5-4005-a49f-6401e3a56e75 (old id 8824910)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 09:04:09
date last changed
2022-03-07 22:55:03
@article{eec9b06a-22c5-4005-a49f-6401e3a56e75,
  abstract     = {{PURPOSE: The early loss of a parent is a tragedy and a serious life event. This study investigated grief resolution and morbidity in cancer-bereaved teenagers 6 to 9 years after the loss of a parent to cancer. METHODS: In a nationwide population-based study of 622 of 851 (73 %) youths who as teenagers 6 to 9 years earlier had lost a parent to cancer, we explored the magnitude of unresolved grief and its association with psychological and physiological morbidity. Participants answered a study-specific anonymous questionnaire including questions about if they had worked through their grief and about their current health.<br>
RESULTS: Six to nine years post-loss 49 % reported unresolved grief (8 % no and 41 % a little grief resolution). They had, in comparison with youths reporting resolved grief, statistically significantly elevated risks, e.g. for insomnia (sons' relative risk (RR) 2.3, 95 % CI 1.3-4.0; daughters' RR 1.7, 95 % CI 1.1-2.7), fatigue (sons' RR 1.8, 95 % CI 1.3-2.5; daughters' RR 1.4, 95 % CI 1.1-1.7) and moderate to severe depression, i.e. score &gt;9, PHQ-9 (sons' RR 3.6, 95 % CI 1.4-8.8; daughters' RR 1.8, 95 % CI 1.1-3.1). Associations remained for insomnia in sons, exhaustion in daughters and fatigue in both sons and daughters when depression, negative intrusive thoughts and avoiding reminders of the parents' disease or death were included in a model.<br>
CONCLUSIONS: Approximately half of cancer-bereaved youth report no or little grief resolution 6 to 9 years post-loss, which is associated with fatigue, sleeping problems and depressive symptoms.}},
  author       = {{Bylund-Grenklo, T and Fürst, Carl Johan and Nyberg, T and Steineck, G and Kreicbergs, U}},
  issn         = {{0941-4355}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{7}},
  pages        = {{3095--3103}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Supportive Care in Cancer}},
  title        = {{Unresolved grief and its consequences. A nationwide follow-up of teenage loss of a parent to cancer 6-9 years earlier.}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00520-016-3118-1}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s00520-016-3118-1}},
  volume       = {{24}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}