Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic on Perceived Stress, Quality of Life, and Coping Strategies of Women With Breast Cancer With Spinal Metastasis Under Chemotherapy

Women with breast cancer spinal metastases are highly prone to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), resulting in the incidence of stress in these women. The present study aimed to investigate the perceived stress and its effect on the quality of life (QoL) and coping strategies of female chemotherapy patients with breast cancer spinal metastases during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This descriptive-correlational study was conducted during February 20, 2020 and May 21, 2020 at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 61 female chemotherapy patients with breast cancer spinal metastases completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Billings, SF-36 questionnaire, and Moos’ Coping Checklist. The data were analyzed in SPSS using the Pearson correlation coefficient test at the significance level of P<0.05.

The overall perceived stress level of the participants was high (51.10±2.45). The overall score of coping strategies was 46.10±1.15 while the scores of problem- and emotion-focused subscales were 22.25±1.41 and 30.42±01.30, respectively. The perceived stress level had a significant correlation with overall coping (P=0.009, r=0.8), emotion-focused coping (P=0.04, r=0.5), and problem-focused coping (P=0.02, r=0.6) strategies. Finally, the results showed poor relationships between problem-focused and physical health (P=0.009, r=0.4), problem-focused mental health (P=0.01, r=0.4), emotion-focused and physical health (P=0.02, r=0.3), and emotion-focused and mental health (P=0.03, r=0.3).

Based on the findings, there are direct correlations between the perceived stress (strong) and QoL (poor) levels of female chemotherapy patients with breast cancer spinal metastases and their coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic.