A Scoping Review of Psychological Distress Instruments in Women with
Early-Stage Breast Cancer During Chemotherapy
Abstract
Background: Psychological distress is associated with worsening
symptoms during the active treatment period and lower quality of life in
women with early-stage breast cancer. Many studies have indicated risk
for heightened psychological distress across the breast cancer
trajectory. Aim: The purpose of this review is to examine the
literature for instruments used to measure psychological distress among
women with breast cancer during chemotherapy. Methods: This
study used the Arksey and O’Malley framework of scoping reviews. Two
databases, PubMed & CINAHL, were searched for peer-reviewed original
articles that were published within the last ten years, included
participants with a diagnosis of breast cancer stages I to III, and
receiving chemotherapy, English text articles, and studies that report
psychological distress measures. Results: The initial
screening yielded 529 relevant studies. After applying the exclusion
criteria, a total of 17 studies concerning the assessment of
psychological distress during chemotherapy were retained for the
analysis of variables and measures of psychological distress. The
instruments used to measure for psychological distress varied with a
total of 22 measures. The most frequently utilized measure was the
Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale ( n=5), followed by the
Impact of Event Scale ( n=2), the Distress Thermometer (
n=2), and the Perceived Stress Scale ( n=2).
Conclusion: This review identified the gaps related to
inconsistencies in the operationalization and instruments used to
measure psychological distress among breast cancer survivors during
chemotherapy. Standardization of measures assessing psychological
distress, along with conceptual clarity, is essential for measuring
distress in research and clinical practice.