SynthesisPsycho-oncology2026
Mental Health Screening Tools for Cancer Patients, and Their Caregivers: An Umbrella Review.
Synthesis in Psycho-oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 2 papers.
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.
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.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Changes in Patient-Reported Symptoms Across Chemotherapy Cycles: A Prospective Cohort Study in an Outpatient Chemotherapy Clinic.Nursing reports (Pavia, Italy) · 2026Article
- Assessment of quality of life and associated factors among primary caregivers of cancer patients in Palestine: a cross-sectional study.BMC psychology · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
16 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundCancer negatively affects patients' physical status as well as their mental health, increasing the burden of family members and caregivers as well. Thus, the screening of psychological and cognitive functioning is key for the referral to mental health specialists.
aimIdentify available and validated screening tools to assess psychological, psychosocial and cognitive impairment in cancer patients (adults and children), caregivers and family members.
methodsAn umbrella review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. The search strategy was applied to five databases. Reviewers screened titles/abstracts, and the articles included in this initial phase were retrieved for full-text assessment. All conflicts during the screening phase were discussed, and a third reviewer was consulted if discrepancies were not solved. A narrative synthesis and tabulated summaries of results were conducted.
resultsA total of 2304 records were initially identified through systematic searches. Following screening and eligibility assessment, 67 systematic reviews were included. Across the included reviews, 586 different tools were identified and classified into nine thematic domains: (1) Anxiety and Depression, (2) General Mental Disorders, (3) Distress and Fear of Cancer Recurrence, (4) Body Image, Sexuality, and Self-Perception, (5) Caregiving and Social Impact, (6) Cognitive Functioning, (7) Coping Assessment, (8) Unmet Needs, and (9) Other miscellaneous constructs.
conclusionsA wide variety of mental health screening tools are available, covering key psychosocial and cognitive aspects relevant to cancer care. Although most instruments were not specifically developed for oncological populations, many have been validated in this context and appear to perform adequately.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.