Behavioral-Emotional Functioning of Children of Parents with Early Compared to Advanced Cancer

Background: Parental cancer represents a substantial psychological threat to children, but little is known about the relative impact of advanced compared to early-stage cancer on children’s behavioral-emotional functioning. Objectives: To compare the behavioral-emotional functioning in children of parents with early compared to advanced cancer. Design: Single occasion, two-group design with historical comparison group. Setting/Participants: Participants were recruited through cancer centers, oncologists, service organizations, and self-referrals in the United States. Eligible parents had advanced or early-stage cancer, a child 5-17 years old, and spoke and read English. The Child Behavior Checklist was administered to parents to assess their children’s Internalizing and Externalizing Problems. Data were obtained from 236 diagnosed parents, 176 with early and 57 with advanced cancer. Results: Internalizing and Externalizing Problems and Anxious/Depressed Mood were significantly greater for children of parents with advanced compared to early-stage cancer, even after controlling for covariates. Differences in children’s functioning were not affected by parents’ anxiety, depressed mood, treatment, or measures of social determinants of health. Conclusions: This is the first study to systematically compare the effects of parents’ stage of cancer on children’s behavioral-emotional functioning while controlling for potential confounders. Results demonstrate significantly elevated levels of behavioral-emotional problems in children affected by advanced compared to early-stage cancer that were explained by parents’ stage of cancer, not other sources. Future studies need to identify mutable protective and risk factors to reduce the threat of parental cancer.