Parental Stress in Pediatric Brain Tumor and Cancer Cases: A Meta-Analysis of Quality of Life Outcomes

Author : Rajeshwari .V

Abstract :Studies indicate that caring for a cancer child imposes immense emotional, psychological, and financial pressures on parents, but while there has been extensive literature assessing the quality of life (QOL) among survivors of pediatric cancer, minimal focus has been given to the QOL among their parents. With a meta-analytical strategy, the current research brings together the psychological, social, and environmental stresses that these parents undergo and finds that poor social support, emotional distress, economic hardship, long treatment duration, uncertainty regarding the child's prognosis, and interference with family routines significantly amplify parental stress and destabilize well-being. The evidence underlines the necessity for special interventions, such as enhanced mental health care, social support mechanisms, economic assistance schemes, easy access to physicians, and exposure to peer support networks. Improving these cornerstones can facilitate the ability of healthcare systems to provide support for parents, increase resilience, guarantee family stability, and maximize the quality of treatment in children with cancer, finally rewarding both patients and parents.

Keywords :Parental stress, Pediatric cancer, Quality of life (QOL), Emotional distress, Psychological distress.

Conference Name :"National Conference on Medical and Health Sciences (NCMHS-25)"

Conference Place Chennai, India

Conference Date 5th Apr 2025