Psychosocial issues and quality of life of parenting partners of young women with breast cancer

Purpose Data are lacking about the association between quality of life (QOL) and psychosocial issues of partners of young women with breast cancer who co-parent dependent children. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of partners of women with breast cancer diagnosed at age <= 40. Among those partners reporting at least one dependent child under 18 years old at the time of diagnosis, we used multiple linear regression to examine associations between partner QOL and sociodemographic and psychosocial factors, and the patient's cancer stage and time since diagnosis. Results Of the 219 parenting partners, all identified as male with a median age of 44 years; 96% (204/213) reported working full-time at the time of the survey. Fifty-four percent endorsed behaviors indicating maladaptive coping. In adjusted analyses, less than full-time employment (beta = - 8.76; 95% CI = - 17.37, - 0.14), younger age (beta = - 0.35; 95% CI = - 0.069, - 0.02), greater parenting concerns (beta = 0.56; 95% CI = 0.36, 0.75), clinically relevant anxiety symptoms (beta = 13.79; 95% CI = 10.24, 17.35), lower post-traumatic growth score (beta = - 0.33; 95% CI = - 0.51, - 0.16), lower social support (beta = - 0.21; 95% CI = - 0.29, - 0.12), lower sexual satisfaction (beta = - 0.40; 95% CI = - 0.62, - 0.19), and breast cancer stages 3 (beta = 7.61; 95% CI = 0.19, 15.02) and 4 (beta = 12.63; 95% CI = 1.91, 23.34), when compared to stage 0, were associated with lower partner QOL. Conclusion Parenting partners of young women with breast cancer have substantial unmet psychosocial needs. Interventions are needed to enhance QOL and promote adaptive coping for this population.

Automated summary

This study found that partners of young women with breast cancer who co-parent dependent children have high psychosocial needs and low quality of life, requiring targeted interventions to improve their quality of life.