Global Prevalence of Suicide in Patients With Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

AIM: Given that patients with cancer may commit suicide due to physical and mental problems, the present study objectives were to identify particular risk factors of different subgroup of patients including type of cancer, gender, age, type and time of suicide, and geographical region to facilitate early care and psychosocial support. METHODS: A comprehensive review of databases including Embase, Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science was conducted for original articles published in English from January 2000 to March 2022. It is based on the PRISMA checklist. RESULTS: After reviewing 69 articles selected from 15 countries, the total prevalence rate of suicide among 34,157,856 patients with cancer was estimated 67,169, at 0.013 (95% CI, 0.008-0.021). The highest suicide prevalence was related to gastrointestinal cancer, estimated at 0.204 (95% CI, 0.161-0.255). A gender-based meta-analysis showed that the prevalence of suicide/suicidal ideation was higher among men, estimated at 0.013 (95% CI, 0.008-0.023) compared with women, at 0.006 (95% CI, 0.002-0.017). CONCLUSION: Based on study results, suicide-prevention strategies should be aimed at patients younger than 40 years of age to effectively resolve their mental health disorders and promote their self-efficacy in successful management of the disease.

Global depression in breast cancer patients: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is known as one of the most common diseases among women, the psychological consequences of which are common in women and affect various aspects of their lives, so this study aims to investigate the prevalence of depression among women with breast cancer globally. METHOD: The present meta-analysis was performed by searching for keywords related to breast cancer and depression in 4 main databases: PubMed, Embase, Web of Sciences and Scopus in the period of January 2000 to November 2021 and the results of the study using R and CMA software were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 71 studies were selected in English and the results of the analysis showed that the prevalence of depression in women with breast cancer is 30.2%, with Pakistan having the highest (83%) prevalence of depression and Taiwan having the lowest (8.3%). And in the WHO regions, EMRO region had the highest (49.7%) rate and SEARO region had the lowest (23%) prevalence of depression. Also, with increasing age, the prevalence of depression among women with breast cancer increases. CONCLUSION: Community and family support for women with breast cancer, holding psychology and psychotherapy courses, lifestyle modifications and training in this area can be effective in preventing the reduction of the prevalence of depression, and given the pivotal role of women in family affairs, this This can be in line with the work of health system policymakers.

Global systematic review and meta-analysis of health-related quality of life in Behcet's patients.

Background: Behcet's disease (BD) is a chronic fatal illness with a relapsing remitting nature and significant organ-threatening morbidity and mortality. The aim of this research was to examine studies which were conducted on investigation of prevalence of quality of life among patients with Behcet's disease. Methods: A total of 13 articles were extracted from four main databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and Web of Science from the onset of 2000 to January 2021. All studies published in English with the purpose of examining quality of life (QOL) among patients with BD or investigating its main determinants were included. Results: Totally, 1137 BD patients participated in 13 studies. Based on random effect analysis, the total score of physical health-related QOL was 46.7 (95% CI=41.26 to 52.13) and the total score of mental health-related QOL was 49.01 (95% CI=43.83 to 54.18) representing a moderate level of QOL among BD patients. Furthermore, weighted effect size analyses showed a significant correlation between QOL and variables such as patients' age, gender, disease duration and depression (pvalue: 0.00). Conclusion: As the symptoms of BD worsen over time, patients confront with more severe body pain, mobility restrictions, and difficulties in chewing, eating, speaking and swallowing which negatively affect social interactions of patients and reduce their QOL. Furthermore, depression was proved to act as a deteriorating factor for Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) among BD patients. Thus, patients need to be psychologically supported by a specialized team and be informed during the course of treatment to gain useful information about the disease, treatment approaches and coping strategies.

Global quality of life in breast cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer among women worldwide. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to cover the existing research gap and contribute to existing knowledge to provide both researchers and clinicians with a better profile on the topic and consequently help improve the quality of life (QoL) of patients with BC. METHODS: A comprehensive review of original articles published in English from January 2000 to October 2021 from databases including Embase, Scopus, PubMed and Web of Science was conducted based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement. RESULTS: Based on the meta-regression which examined a total of 9012 patients with BC, the QoL score calculated by EORTC QLQ-C30 was 64.72 (95% CI 59.24 to 70.20), while the score obtained from FACT-B was 84.39 (95% CI 64.24 to 104.54) and the scores from QLQ-BR23 and SF-36 were 66.33 (95% CI 62.76 to 69.90) and 57.23 (95% CI 47.65 to 66.82), respectively. A meta-analysis affirmed a significant direct relationship between the QoL score of patients with BC and their age (p=0.03). The results also revealed that the QoL scores of patients who had completed treatment were higher than those who were currently under treatment. CONCLUSION: The present systematic review identified several factors that affect the QoL of women with BC worldwide and provided several implications for developing policy interventions to effectively improve the QoL of women with BC. In this way, clinicians can sufficiently give advice to their patients with the purpose of improving their QoL.PROSPERO registration number CRD42022309791.