ABSTRACT
Context: Evidence-based research on psycho-oncology in last three decades lays emphasis upon the critical role of psychologicalservices for better illness adjustment, improved quality of life, reduced distress and cognitive problems among the rapidly increasingpediatric cancer population.Justification: This review aims to summarize the evidence-based psychological interventions in childhood cancer over the two decadesand addresses the wide gap that existed between intervention studies worldwide and India, thus highlighting the need for research andappropriate services.Evidence acquisition: We searched electronic databases such as MedLine, PubMed, PsycINFO, and Google Scholar. Key searchterms were pediatric cancer, psycho-oncology, children with cancer + psychological intervention, or multimodal treatment, psychotherapy,cognitive training, behavioral, social skills+ feasibility study, pilot, randomized controlled trial, case study, systematic reviews.Results: 28 full papers published between 1996 to 2016, including survivors and under-treatment children below 18 years, werereviewed. Various types of key interventions were psychosocial, physical, cognitive behavioral, cognitive, music art therapy and playtherapy. Generally, intervention settings were either hospital or home, and were designed to promote psychological well-being.Psychological interventions were more in customised formats in these studies. A generic intervention module was not available forreplication.Conclusion: Development of culture-specific generic intervention module and using the same in randomized control studies with largereffect size are needed in India for larger coverage of patients.
ABSTRACT
Background and Objectives: Tobacco use is a major public health issue today and it is expected that 650 million smokers will die prematurely due to tobacco use. On 15 July 2007, Chandigarh became the first city to go smoke-free. However, there is no data on the impact of smoke-free law. The objective of the present study was therefore to study the pattern and prevalence of tobacco use and to examine the impact of smoke-free law in Chandigarh. Materials and Methods: Total sample comprised of 3000 subjects. Socio-demographic data sheet along with initial two questions from the General questionnaire were administered on each individual. In addition, all the tobacco users underwent administration of the Fagerstrom test for nicotine dependence or the Fagerstrom test for smokeless tobacco (smokeless tobacco users). Results: There were 43.9% tobacco users in the sample of 3000 subjects. Out of these tobacco users, 357 (11.9%) were pure smokers and 370 (12.3%) were using smokeless tobacco and 590 (19.6%) used both. The mean number of cigarettes/bidis smoked per day was 14 (+8.64) and the mean age of starting smoking was 19.41 (SD + 4.5 years).73.2% of population was aware about implementation of smoke-free law and all the participants (100%) reported smoking in public places. 43.4% smokers reported thoughts of quitting nicotine. Interpretation and Conclusion: Although the prevalence of tobacco use in Chandigarh is lower than the national average but the rates are still alarming and need attention. The findings of this study will help in designing tobacco control strategies and understanding the epidemiology of tobacco related health burden.