Cancer’s profound impact on emotional well-being necessitates an exploration into the underlying psychological mechanisms influencing depression and anxiety in patients. In this study, we explored the potential role of self-compassion, alexithymia, and cognitive emotion regulation mechanisms in influencing depressive and anxiety symptoms among cancer patients. A total of 151 stage 4 cancer patients participated. Instruments applied included the Beck Depression Scale (BDS), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Self-Compassion Scale (SCS), Cognitive Emotion Regulation Scale (CERQ), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and Brief Psychological Resilience Scale (BRS). The multivariate analysis utilizing the independent variables—SCS, adaptive and maladaptive CERQ, TAS subscales, BRS, and VAS scores—accounted for 39% of the variance seen in BDI (F (8142) = 11.539, p < 0.001). Notably, SCS, adaptive CERQ, and BRS had a negative predictive impact on BDI. Our findings substantiate a statistically significant partial mediatory role of resilience and cognitive emotion regulation in the association between self-compassion and depression. This research accentuates the central role self-compassion, emotional resilience, and cognitive regulation play in the emotional well-being of individuals diagnosed with cancer. Targeted therapeutic interventions focusing on these dimensions may enhance the psychological health of patients, ultimately improving overall treatment outcomes in the oncological setting.

This study aimed to elucidate the role of psychological factors in caregiver burden among caregivers of stage 4 cancer patients. Data were collected from 328 caregivers of cancer patients, employing the Zarit Care Burden Scale, Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale (DASS-42), Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale (DAS-A), Ruminative Thought Style Questionnaire (RTSQ), and Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced Inventory (Brief COPE). Males, spouses, and caregivers of patients with a PEG or tracheostomy, or those diagnosed with pancreatic biliary cancer were found to have a significantly higher risk of caregiver burden. Age, sex, caregiver-patient relationship, caregiving duration, patient’s catheter status, cancer types, depression and stress severity, rumination, dysfunctional attitudes, and dysfunctional coping strategies explained 69.7% of the variance in Zarit Care Burden Scale scores (F(14,313) = 51.457, p < 0.001), illustrating their significant predictive relationship with caregiver burden. Moderation analysis revealed significant interactions of emotional coping with depression (b = −0.0524, p = 0.0076) and dysfunctional coping with stress on caregiver burden (b = 0.014, p = 0.006). Furthermore, rumination mediated the relationships between caregiver burden, stress, and depression (p < 0.01). Overall, the results highlight the intricate relationships among caregiver burden, mental health, and coping strategies, suggesting tailored interventions to support caregiver health and quality of care.

We aimed to identify a rapid, accurate and accessible biomarker in the early stages of COVID-19 that can determine the prognosis of the disease in cancer patients. A total number of 241 patients with solid cancers who had COVID-19 diagnosis between March 2020 and February 2022 were included in the study. Factors and markers of inflammation were analyzed by year of diagnosis of COVID-19 and grouped by severity of infection. Hospitalization, referral to the intensive care unit (ICU), mechanical ventilation and death were more frequent in 2020 than in 2021 and 2022. (mortality rates respectively 18.8%, 3.8% and 2.5%) Bilateral lung involvement and chronic lung disease were independent risk factors for severe disease in 2020. In 2021-2022, only bilateral lung involvement was found as an independent risk factor for severe disease. The neutrophil to lymphocyte, platelet ratio (NLPR) with the highest area under the curve (AUC) value in 2020 had a sensitivity of 71.4% and specificity of 73.3% in detecting severe disease (cut-off > 0.0241, Area Under the Curve (AUC) =0.842, p < 0.001). In 2021-2022, the sensitivity of the C-reactive protein to lymphocyte ratio (CRP/L) with the highest AUC value was 70.0%, and the specificity was 73.3% (cut-off > 36.7, AUC = 0.829, p = 0.001). This is the first study to investigate the distribution and characteristics of cancer patients diagnosed with COVID-19. Based on the data from our study, bilateral lung involvement is an independent factor for severe disease, and the CRP/L inflammation index appears to be the most reliable prognostic marker.

The comorbidity between the major depressive disorder (MDD) and the social anxiety disorder (SAD) is significantly prevalent, necessitating a nuanced understanding of their overlapping clinical characteristics and shared etiological factors, including inflammatory biomarkers. To address this, we conducted a cross-sectional study from December 2021 to June 2022, encompassing 204 outpatients diagnosed with MDD-SAD comorbidity. We employed various psychometric assessments, such as the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ-28), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS). Additionally, we analyzed inflammatory biomarkers including the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte platelet ratio (NLPR), systemic inflammation index (SII), and the systemic inflammation response index (SIRI). Our findings accentuated that patients primarily diagnosed with MDD exhibited elevated levels of certain inflammatory biomarkers. They reported more severe and atypical depressive symptoms (75.7% vs 58.5%; P = 0.010) and had significantly higher CTQ-28 subscale scores (P < 0.05). Our study unveils a complex relationship between MDD and SAD, with significant disparities in the symptom severity and inflammatory biomarker levels, thereby establishing a compelling case for dual-diagnosis treatment approaches. It elucidates the critical role of inflammation in the comorbidity of MDD and SAD, marking a pioneering step towards more comprehensive and holistic patient care strategies. These insights could potentially revolutionize therapeutic approaches in psychiatric care, promising significantly improved outcomes through early detection and integrated intervention strategies.

Cognitive impairments—especially in executive function and attention—are core features of schizophrenia and major barriers to functional recovery. Although systemic physiological factors such as blood viscosity and serum osmolarity have been implicated in schizophrenia, their association with cognitive deficits remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate these relationships in male patients with schizophrenia in remission. A total of 247 male patients diagnosed with schizophrenia in remission were recruited. Cognitive performance was assessed using the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB), Stroop Test, and Trail Making Test (TMT). Hemorheological parameters, including whole blood viscosity (WBV) at low and high shear rates (LSR and HSR), and serum osmolarity were calculated. Regression analyses were conducted to determine predictors of cognitive outcomes. In the multivariate analysis, higher WBV at HSR (β = 0.122, β = 0.037) was positively associated with executive function (FAB scores) and inversely associated with Stroop 5 time (β = −0.134, p = 0.025), TMT-A (β = −0.134, p = 0.032), and TMT-B (β = −0.137, p = 0.028) completion times, reflecting better cognitive performance. While higher serum osmolarity showed a positive correlation with FAB scores in univariate analysis, it did not remain an independent predictor in the multivariate model. The multivariate regression identified WBV at HSR, depressive symptoms, negative symptoms, use of long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAI), and living arrangements as significant predictors of FAB scores, collectively explaining 16.9% of the variance (F(8,238) = 7.252, p < 0.001). This study highlights the potential contribution of systemic physiological factors to cognitive function in schizophrenia. Higher WBV, within a physiological range, may support cerebral perfusion and be associated with better executive performance. Although serum osmolarity showed a positive association with executive function in univariate analysis, it was not an independent predictor in multivariate models, and its cognitive relevance remains to be clarified. These findings point to a possible role of physiological parameters in cognitive variability, but further studies are needed before drawing firm clinical implications. Not applicable.