Among adult survivors of childhood cancers such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), mental distress, fatigue, and impaired executive function appear to be common, according to a study published in Current Oncology.
Anna R. Franzén, Ph.D., of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, and her colleagues assessed reported levels of mental distress, fatigue, and executive function impairment in 132 adult survivors of ALL, AML, and NHL who were recruited from two major hospitals in Norway.
The team found that 49 percent of participants met the clinical threshold for depression, 41 percent for anxiety, 43 percent for fatigue, and 28 percent for executive function impairment. Executive function problems were significantly linked with both mental distress and fatigue.
"It is well known that many childhood cancer survivors experience various health problems later in life, but the fact that so many of these children struggle with their mental health as adults is new knowledge," Franzén said in a statement. "Follow-up studies will be needed to understand how these difficulties develop over time."
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