Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40136337›Full record

SynthesisCurrent oncology (Toronto, Ont.)2025

PTSD in Patients Who Undergo Head and Neck Cancer Treatment: A Systematic Review.

Orli Weiss, Juliana Runnels, Daniel R Dickstein, Kristin Hsieh, Lauren Jacobs, Anuja Shah, Danielle Arons, Samuel Reed, Kunal K Sindhu, Richard Bakst and 1 more

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Orli WeissDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-1406-0314
Juliana RunnelsDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Daniel R DicksteinDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Kristin HsiehDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-4100-473X
Lauren JacobsDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-6745-9890
Anuja ShahDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Danielle AronsDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Samuel ReedDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Kunal K SindhuDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-9376-8307
Richard BakstDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Julie BloomDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-3819-7852

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND/

objectivesPost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop after exposure to real or perceived threats to life and is characterized by symptoms including intrusive thoughts, hyperarousal, and emotional numbness. While PTSD is well-studied in populations affected by disasters and combat, the impact of serious medical conditions like cancer and its treatments remain under-researched. Due to the aggressive nature of the disease, fear of recurrence, and disfiguring nature of treatments, patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) may experience a real or perceived risk of death. This systematic review synthesizes current knowledge on PTSD in patients with HNC.

methodsA systematic review was conducted per PRISMA guidelines. Five databases (PubMed, EMBASE, SCOPUS, CINAHL, and COCHRANE) were searched for studies describing PTSD in patients with and survivors of HNC. Studies with PTSD diagnosis and/or symptom data specific to patients with HNC were included.

resultsOf 80 studies, 14 met the inclusion criteria. The most commonly used scale was the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version. The prevalence of PTSD ranged from 8% to 41% across the studies. No significant differences were found with regards to PTSD prevalence by HNC tumor site, disease stage, or treatment modality. Two studies identified significant associations between PTSD after treatment and depression at the time of diagnosis. Patients with PTSD who received cognitive behavioral therapy showed improvement in their PTSD symptoms compared to those who did not.

conclusionsPTSD is common in individuals with HNC; however, the lack of a standardized approach to diagnosing PTSD in patients with and survivors of HNC creates challenges in identifying patients who may benefit from treatment. Given that HNC is the seventh most common cancer worldwide, with increasing incidence, there is a need to better understand the relationship between HNC and PTSD to allow for better PTSD screening, identification, and treatment to improve patients' health-related quality of life and provide optimal patient care.

Indexed as

Head and Neck NeoplasmsStress Disorders, Post-TraumaticHumanshead and neck cancermental healthPTSDradiation therapytrauma

Identifiers

PMID40136337
PMCPMC11941172

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.