A recent study published in Cancer Management and Research has shed light on the profound impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of older adults who have battled cancer. The research underscores the heightened risk of depression faced by this vulnerable demographic during the early stages of the pandemic.
The study centered on a cohort of 2,486 adults aged 50 and above, all of whom had a history of cancer and participated in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. Among the 1,765 individuals in this group who had previously battled cancer but had never experienced depression, a startling revelation emerged: one in eight individuals grappled with depression for the first time in their lives during the pandemic’s initial months.
Andie MacNeil, a co-author of the study and a researcher at the Institute for Life Course and Aging at the University of Toronto, commented on the unique challenges faced by older adults with cancer. “Older adults with cancer also have to navigate the stress of being particularly vulnerable to severe COVID-19-related morbidity and mortality,” she noted. MacNeil highlighted that while adhering strictly to lockdown measures was vital to minimize the risk of COVID-19 infection, it often meant forgoing the critical social support that is indispensable during cancer treatment and recovery.
Delving deeper into the research, the team focused on the 786 individuals who had previously grappled with depression. Approximately half of this group experienced a recurrence or persistence of depression during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ying Jiang, a Senior Epidemiologist at the Public Health Agency of Canada and co-author of the study, emphasized the vulnerability of older adults who had previously battled depression. “Older adults who experienced depression in the past were a particularly vulnerable subset of the population,” she pointed out, adding that their vulnerability was exacerbated if they faced functional limitations, which doubled the odds of experiencing depression.
The study also highlighted the significant role of family conflict during the pandemic, showing that it was associated with a four-fold risk of both new and recurrent depression among older adults with a history of cancer. This finding aligns with previous research linking interpersonal conflict to depression in older adults. The prolonged periods of lockdown and quarantine brought about by the pandemic were identified as factors contributing to increased familial conflict. “Of particular concern, the pandemic also reduced access to many coping strategies that can help mitigate family conflict, such as time spent outside the home and time spent with friends,” noted Grace Li, a co-author of the study and a PhD candidate in the Sociology Department at the University of Victoria.
Moreover, the study revealed that incident depression, or depression experienced for the first time, was nearly 50% higher among women. Gender roles may have played a role in this heightened risk, with women more likely to shoulder time-consuming caregiving responsibilities and household labor. Margaret de Groh, Scientific Manager at the Public Health Agency of Canada and co-author of the study, highlighted this alignment with existing research, which suggests that caregiving roles may contribute to an increased risk of depression.
Esme Fuller-Thomson, the senior author of the study and a Professor at FIFSW (Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work) and Director of the Institute for Life Course & Aging, expressed hope that the study’s findings would offer valuable insights to healthcare workers and social service providers, aiding their understanding of the pandemic’s impact on the mental health of individuals with cancer. “Future research should continue to examine depression among older adults with cancer to better understand the pandemic’s long-term impacts,” Fuller-Thomson concluded.
