PMID- 16184617 OWN - NLM STAT- MEDLINE DCOM- 20061005 LR - 20220311 IS - 1057-9249 (Print) IS - 1057-9249 (Linking) VI - 15 IP - 4 DP - 2006 Apr TI - The role of physical and psychological symptoms in desire for death: a study of terminally ill cancer patients. PG - 355-60 AB - The current study assessed the attitudes of the desire for hastened death in terminally ill cancer patients and whether these are determined by their physical and psychological symptoms. The final sample consisted of 106 terminally ill cancer patients attending a Palliative Care Unit, in University of Athens, Greece, between June and October 2004. Significant associations were found between the desire for hastened death (D.H.D.) and 'pain' (r=0.469, p<0.005), 'fatigue' (r=0.591, p<0.0005), 'loss of appetite' (r=0.622, p<0.0005) and 'feeling sad' (r=0.635, p<0.0005). Statistically significant associations were also found between Schedule of Attitudes towards Hastened Death (SAHD) scores, age (r=0.300, p=0.002) and ECOG (p<0.0005). Twenty-six percent of the patients reported high D.H.D. while 41% reported moderate desire. In the prediction of SHAD the contribution of 'pain' (p=0.011), 'lack of appetite' (p=0.012) and 'sadness' (p=0.011) is high (42% of variance). Further findings suggest that D.H.D. is significantly related to 'feeling sad', 'lack of appetite', 'pain' and 'fatigue' after controlling for age, gender and performance status according to ECOG in terminally ill cancer patients. CI - (c) 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. FAU - Mystakidou, Kyriaki AU - Mystakidou K AD - Pain Relief and Palliative Care Unit, Department of Radiology, Areteion Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Athens, 27 Korinthias Str., 115 26 Athens, Greece. mistakidou@yahoo.com FAU - Parpa, Efi AU - Parpa E FAU - Katsouda, Emmanuela AU - Katsouda E FAU - Galanos, Antonis AU - Galanos A FAU - Vlahos, Lambros AU - Vlahos L LA - eng PT - Journal Article PL - England TA - Psychooncology JT - Psycho-oncology JID - 9214524 SB - IM MH - Adult MH - Aged MH - Aged, 80 and over MH - *Attitude to Death MH - Critical Illness/*psychology MH - Depression/epidemiology/*etiology/psychology MH - Fatigue/*epidemiology/*etiology MH - Female MH - Humans MH - Male MH - Middle Aged MH - Neoplasms/*complications/*psychology MH - Pain/*epidemiology/*etiology/psychology MH - Palliative Care MH - Surveys and Questionnaires EDAT- 2005/09/27 09:00 MHDA- 2006/10/06 09:00 CRDT- 2005/09/27 09:00 PHST- 2005/09/27 09:00 [pubmed] PHST- 2006/10/06 09:00 [medline] PHST- 2005/09/27 09:00 [entrez] AID - 10.1002/pon.972 [doi] PST - ppublish SO - Psychooncology. 2006 Apr;15(4):355-60. doi: 10.1002/pon.972.