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Coping and Attachment in Pediatric Oncohematology

NCT06858163 · Status: RECRUITING · Type: OBSERVATIONAL · Enrollment: 60

Last updated 2026-04-24

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Cancer can be a traumatic and particularly salient experience in a person's history. The ways in which the pediatric patient copes with it depend on the interaction of several factors present in his or her life context, primarily the relationship that is established between parent and child.

Despite the paucity of studies in the literature in this regard, it would seem that parental coping is predictive of child coping. Coping strategies represent the ways in which people try to manage traumatic events or stressful everyday situations.

Currently, the literature identifies two main categories of coping strategies: emotion-oriented and problem-oriented strategies. The former are aimed on reducing stress-induced unpleasant emotions (e.g., problem avoidance, positive reappraisal, etc.); the latter, on the other hand, focus on stress dissolution/alteration (e.g., problem identification and resolution, stress cause research). Some studies, previously conducted in oncology, show that emotion-focused coping strategies are associated with better adaptation immediately after diagnosis, but their positive influence tends to weaken over time; problem-focused coping strategies are more correlated with poor adaptation immediately after diagnosis, but in the later stages of treatment.

The clinical experience with patients in the Pediatric Oncohematology Department brings out the need to develop and structure a psychological assessment model, in order to ensure a more effective care of the family units followed.

The research aims, through a single administration of psychological tests, to investigate the role of attachment and some variables (age, gender, stage of treatment, stage of the disease, social support, resilience, ability to adapt to environmental stimuli, emotional state of of caregivers) on the coping strategies implemented by the parents of patients and the patients themselves, in order to differentiate the types of psychological intervention, to try to reduce psychological distress and increase levels of mental well-being.

Conditions

  • Pediatric Cancer
  • Coping Behavior
  • Relationship, Parent Child

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Fondazione Soleterre - Strategie di Pace ONLUS

    collaborator UNKNOWN

  • Università Pavia - Dipartimento di Scienze del Sistema Nervoso e del Comportamento

    collaborator UNKNOWN

  • Catholic University of the Sacred Heart

    collaborator OTHER

  • Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo di Pavia

    lead OTHER

Eligibility

Min Age
8 Years
Max Age
17 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2023-07-12
Primary Completion
2026-12-31
Completion
2026-12-31

Countries

  • Italy

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT06858163 on ClinicalTrials.gov