Youngmee Kim

University of Miami | UM · Department of Psychology

Objetivo: Los objetivos del estudio fueron examinar las tasas y la interdependencia de los síntomas depresivos y los problemas del sueño en pacientes con cáncer y sus cuidadores familiares. Métodos: Se incluyeron en el estudio un total de 188 pacientes diagnosticados de cáncer (69.3 años, 56.9% hombres) y sus cuidadores familiares (63.8 años, 30.7%...

Background Disturbed sleep is frequently identified in adult patients with cancer and their caregivers, with detrimental impact on physical health. Less known is the extent to which self‐reported and actigraph‐measured sleep patterns are similar between patients and their sleep‐partner caregivers, and how these different modes of sleep measurements...

Introduction Sleep disturbance is frequently identified in patients with cancer and their caregivers, with detrimental impact on physical health. Less known is the extent to which self-reported and actigraphy-derived sleep patterns correlate between patients and their sleep-partner caregivers, and how the two modes of sleep measurements are related...

Objective Cancer can be a traumatic experience affecting multidimensional aspects of sleep among patients and caregivers. This study examined the differential associations of cancer-related post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) with various sleep markers in this population. Methods Patients newly diagnosed with colorectal cancer ( n = 138, mean ag...

Objective To examine risk‐factors of cancer‐related PTSS in the 2‐years post‐diagnosis in adult colorectal cancer patients and caregivers. Methods Patients with colorectal cancer and their caregivers ( N = 130 dyads) self‐reported sociodemographic, psychosocial, and medical factors at diagnosis/treatment initiation (T1), at 1‐ (T2), and 2‐year (T3...

Objective Systematic understanding of patients’ unmet needs is essential for providing effective supportive care. This study sought to compare the unmet needs of patients with cancer identified by health care providers (HCPs) among four major healthcare systems.MethodsHCPs (n = 247) participated in the International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) S...

Objective: This study examined the unique associations of different dimensions of the resilience factor, benefit finding, on concurrent and prospective psychological and biological adjustment outcomes over the first year after a colorectal cancer diagnosis. Methods and measures: Individuals newly diagnosed with colorectal cancer (n = 133, mean a...

Objectives Sleep disturbances are common among adult patients with cancer and their caregivers. To our knowledge, no sleep intervention to date has been designed to be provided to both patients with cancer and their caregivers simultaneously. This single-arm study aimed to pilot test the feasibility and acceptability, and to illustrate the prelimin...

Objective: Family members are typically the primary caregivers of patients with chronic illnesses. Family caregivers of adult relatives with cancer are a fast-growing population yet the physical consequences of their stress due to the cancer in the family have been poorly understood. This study examined the bidirectional relations of the perceived...

We present a novel comprehensive literature review of studies of the psychosocial functioning (PF) and quality of life (QoL) of patients with childhood glaucoma and their caregivers. Our findings demonstrate variable study quality and approach, as well as inconsistent results relating to the association of glaucoma-specific factors and sociodemogra...

Concerns pertaining to health and to problems in close relationships are both known to be major stressors, yet existing tools are inadequate to assess individual reactions to such stressors. Thus, we sought to develop and preliminarily validate a stress-inducing task for use in a laboratory setting that pertains to the sorts of health-related conce...

Background Sleep disturbance is common and problematic among both patients with cancer and their sleep partner caregivers. Although 70% of the general adult population sleep in the same bed with a significant other, as do adult cancer patients and their spousal/partner caregivers, and one's sleep affect the partner's sleep, existing psychobehaviora...

We sought to determine differences by low- and middle- income countries (Brazil, Romania, and Turkiye) on the degree to which health care providers (HCPs) note unmet needs among patients with cancer (N = 741). HCPs endorsed sexuality/intimacy and financial concerns as the most common. Investigating age differences in unmet needs between Brazil and...

PurposeThis international study aimed to compare healthcare professionals’ perspectives on the unmet needs of their cancer patients with those of family caregivers and to investigate the degree to which patients’ age group moderates the associations.Methods Healthcare professionals involved in the care for cancer patients and their family caregiver...

Purpose: A major illness is traumatic for patients and families, posing risk for disease-related posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). There is little available information to identify the cancer patients and caregivers at greatest risk for PTSS. This study examines the risk factors of PTSS in colorectal cancer. Method: Patients with colorectal can...

Objective: Cancer patients and their family caregivers have reported various needs that are not met. Recognition of the unmet needs by healthcare professionals may be a first step to adequately and systematically addressing them. Thus, the International Psycho-Oncology Society Survivorship Online Survey was developed to measure healthcare professi...

Objective: Four symptoms of posttraumatic stress (PTSS: intrusion, avoidance, alterations in arousal and reactivity, and negative alterations in cognitions and mood) were put forth by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM-5). Patients with chronic major medical illness and their family caregivers often perceive the illness...

Chronic stress is a well-established risk factor for cardiometabolic disease. Caregiving for individuals with cancer is perceived as a chronic stressor yet research on the risk for cardiometabolic disease in this population, opposed to the elderly and those with Alzheimer’s disease, is limited. Additionally, few studies have explored the early phys...

Poor sleep and different patterns of marital status among Hispanics/Latinos have been documented, yet the extent to which marital status is associated with sleep health and the moderating role of gender in this association among Hispanics/Latinos is poorly understood. Demographic and sleep data were obtained from the Hispanic Community Health Study...

Objective: The experience of cancer not only elicits turmoil but also resilience in the family, which has been related to psychological adjustment and physical health of family caregivers. The biological pathways linking family cancer caregiving to health, however, remain poorly understood. This study examined the extent to which psychological ris...

Background Identifying and addressing caregivers' unmet needs have been suggested as a way of reducing their distress and improving their quality of life. However, the needs of family cancer caregivers are complex in the period of long‐term survivorship in particular because they may diverge as the patients' survivorship trajectory does, and that i...

Objective To investigate the extent to which age and specific sources of caregiving stress are associated with cancer caregivers’ health. Methods: New colorectal cancer caregivers (n = 88; age M = 49) reported caregiving stress (i.e., disrupted schedule, lacking family support, financial strain) and mental and physical health, and collected saliva...

Background Fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) has been associated with cancer screening behaviors among cancer survivors, but to the authors' knowledge, the question of whether the same is true for caregivers is unknown. The current study investigated the extent to which FCR among caregivers predicted their cancer screening behaviors years after their...

Purpose/Background Accumulating evidence shows that bereaved family caregivers report elevated distress for an extended period, which compromises their quality of life. A first step in the development of programs to enhance bereaved caregivers’ quality of life should be determining the needs they experience to manage the loss, and the needs that ar...

Purpose To identify demographic and caregiving characteristics associated with caregivers’ unmet needs and to examine associations of caregivers’ unmet needs with their quality of life at 2 years and 5 years since their patients’ initial diagnosis. Methods Family cancer caregivers completed prospective longitudinal surveys at 2 years (T1) and 5 ye...

Objectives: To review the family caregivers' unmet needs in the long-term phase of survivorship to identify unique challenges faced by family caregivers. Data sources: Research-based articles and published reports. Conclusion: Family caregivers diverge into three distinct groups in the long-term survivorship phase: those remaining in care, tho...

Introduction Family caregivers of adult cancer patients are at risk for elevated psychological distress and poorer sleep quality, compared with non-caregivers. While psychological distress is known to be a predictor of poor sleep, unknown is the specificity of the distress/mood to which poor sleep is most attributable. This study aimed to investiga...

Introduction Sleep disturbance in adult cancer patients and their caregivers is a substantial health problem requiring further investigation. Sleep is a dyadic process that is influenced by relational activities between individuals, including daily communication about concerns between patients and their spousal caregivers. This study aims to examin...

Introduction Sleep disturbance is a prominent concern for cancer patients. Sleep is optimized when the individual feels emotionally safe, which is reflected in close relationships and intimacy. Cancer diagnosis threatens the close relationship between patients and their partner, which activates one's attachment internal working model and can be man...

PurposeWith an increased investment in psychosocial caregiving research, it becomes critical to establish the need for data of key stakeholders and future strategic directions. The purpose of this international Delphi study was to engage caregivers, clinicians, researchers, and managers to identify priority topics for caregiver research in cancer c...

Stressed caregivers are known to have poorer quality of life (mental and physical health) during the caregiving period. Unknown are prospective longitudinal associations of early caregiving stress with quality of life years later, biological pathways of the associations, and ethnic differences in the associations. Family caregivers (n = 64, 49-year...

Caring for a loved one with cancer can take a toll on one’s physical health. Cancer caregivers may also experience posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) from cancer as a secondary trauma, possibly linking to physiological alterations. This study examined longitudinally relations between caregiver PTSS around diagnosis (T1) with neuroendocrine biomar...

This chapter provides theoretical perspectives and empirical findings on the role of sociocultural factors in caregiving involvement, caregiving stress, caregivers’ unmet needs, and caregivers’ quality-of-life outcomes. This chapter concludes that taking socioculturally tailored and targeted approaches is promising for identifying subgroups of care...

Background Cancer affects both men and women, yet systematic understanding of the role of gender in caregiving and dyadic caregiver‐patient interactions is lacking. Thus, it may be useful to review how gender theories apply to cancer caregiving, and to evaluate the adequacy of current cancer caregiving studies to the gender theories. Methods Sever...

Background Although spirituality has been identified as a psychological resource relevant to coping with caregiving stress, little is known about the differential roles of spirituality’s facets in bereaved caregivers’ adjustment. Purpose This study examined this question with regard to bereavement-specific and general distress in cancer caregivers...

Introduction Both cancer survivors and their spousal caregivers report substantially poor sleep quality. Studies have examined the effects of daytime stress and satisfaction in life on sleep quality, but these have been limited to the individual level and non-cancer populations. This study aimed to explore the degree to which daily stress and life...

Introduction Caffeine has biologic effects on sleep and those with poor sleep commonly use caffeine to mitigate daytime consequences. The relationship between caffeine consumption and sleep has not been studied in U.S. Hispanics/Latinos. Methods We examined cross-sectional associations between caffeine consumption and sleep, using data from adults...

Purpose: This study tested a theory linking a marker of low serotonergic function to both depression and impulsivity in a sample of advanced breast cancer patients, among whom elevated depressive symptoms and difficulty regulating emotions are commonly reported. Methods: A total of 95 patients provided blood samples for serotonin transporter pol...

Background: Cancer caregiving has been associated with worsening health among caregivers themselves, yet demographic and psychosocial predictors of their long-term health decline are less known. This study examines changes in caregivers' physical health 2 to 8 years after their family members' cancer diagnosis and prospective predictors of that ch...

Objective: Cancer caregiving burden is known to vary across the survivorship trajectory and has been linked with caregivers' subsequent health impairment. Little is known, however, regarding how risk factors during long-term survivorship relate to vulnerability to caregivers' health during that period. This study examined effects of caregiving sta...

PurposeMonitoring distress assessment in cancer patients during the treatment phase is a component of good quality care practice. Yet, there is a dearth of prospective studies examining distress. In an attempt to begin filling this gap and inform clinical practice, we conducted a prospective, longitudinal study examining changes in distress (anxiet...

Introduction: Asthma prevalence is reportedly higher among U.S.-born relative to foreign-born Hispanics/Latinos. Little is known about rates of asthma onset before and after relocation to the U.S. in Latinos. Asthma rates were examined by U.S. residence and country/territory of origin. Methods: In 2015-2016, age at first onset of asthma symptoms...

Objective: Evidence suggests interdependence between cancer patients' and their caregivers' physical and mental health. However, the extent to which caregivers' health relates to their patients' recovery, or patients' health affects their caregivers' outcomes, is largely unknown. This dyadic investigation reports the relations between cancer patie...

Background: A substantial number of family caregivers go through bereavement because of cancer, but little is known about the bereaved caregivers' long-term adjustment. This study aimed to document levels of bereavement outcomes (prolonged grief symptoms, intense emotional reaction to the loss, depressive symptoms, and life satisfaction) among fam...

A polymorphism in the mu opioid receptor gene OPRM1 (rs1799971) has been investigated for its role in sensitivity to social contexts. Evidence suggests that the G allele of this polymorphism is associated with higher levels of sensitivity. This study tested for main effects of the polymorphism and its interaction with a self-report measure of child...

This study examined how stress from cancer affects fruit and vegetable consumption (FVC) in cancer patients and their family caregivers during the year following diagnosis. Colorectal cancer patients and their caregivers (92 dyads) completed questionnaires at two (T1), six (T2), and 12 months post-diagnosis (T3). Individuals reported perceived canc...

Objective: The long-term psychosocial impact of adult daughters caring for their mothers with breast cancer has been recognized but understudied. The objectives of this study were to characterize the psychosocial functioning of women who served as informal caregivers during their mothers. treatment for breast cancer in two distinct samples, communi...

The long-term impact of cancer caregiving on the family caregivers' quality of life (QOL) is currently not known. This study aimed (a) to characterize family caregivers of cancer survivors at 8 years post-diagnosis in terms of multidimensional aspects of QOL and (b) to identify demographic and early caregiving experience characteristics that may pl...

Cancer patients and their family caregivers often report elevated levels of depressive symptoms, along with poorer mental and physical health (quality of life: QOL). Although the mutuality in distress between patients and their caregivers is relatively well known, unknown are the degree to which caregivers' depressive symptoms independently predict...

This is a chapter on hospice and home care in the book "Psycho-Oncology.

Studies have shown that caregivers report impaired quality of life (QOL). This study investigated how caregiving motives predict long-term spirituality and QOL among cancer caregivers and the role of gender in these associations. Caregiving motives of family members (n = 369) were measured 2 years after their relative's cancer diagnosis (T1), and b...

This study examined the role of ethnicity (Black vs White) in the extent to which patients' appraisal of the impact of cancer on themselves and their family members relates to their physical health. Colorectal cancer patients provided self-reports for study variables at 2 and 12 months post-diagnosis (N = 60). Hierarchical regression analysis revea...

Objective: Although enhanced spiritual well-being has been linked to positive mental health outcomes among family caregivers of cancer patients, little is known regarding predictors of spiritual well-being in this population. The current study aimed to examine caregiving experiences as predictors of change in family caregivers' spiritual well-bein...

BACKGROUND: Cancer treatment often provokes heightened levels of psychological distress and impaired quality of life (QOL). As large variability in the initial levels and change patterns in distress and QOL has also been evidenced, identifying significant predictors of the trajectory patterns is an important first step to develop targeted intervent...

BACKGROUND The objective of this study was to investigate associations between earlier caregiving experience and the development of physical impairments over the subsequent 6 years among family caregivers of patients with cancer.METHODS Family caregivers of cancer survivors participated in a nationwide survey 2 years after their relative's cancer d...

Objective: Few studies address the longer term psychological adjustment of family caregivers who provide care to a relative with cancer. This study aimed to document levels of depressive symptoms among caregivers 5 years after their relative's initial diagnosis and to identify psychosocial factors that may prospectively predict caregivers' depress...

Many families and close friends are experiencing bereavement due to cancer. A review of recent studies of bereavement outcomes, mainly elevated psychological distress, suggests that bereaved family members, compared with nonbereaved, have poorer quality of life. They display high levels of complicated grief, anxiety, and depression and use bereavem...

Background and objective: Even though cancer is the second most common cause of death, little is known about the extent to which family caregivers find meaning and benefit in the loss, and associated demographic characteristics and caregiving experiences. This study addressed this gap in our knowledge. Design and subjects: Family caregivers part...

Accumulating evidence has supported the view that cancer affects not only the patients/survivors but also their family members. The impact on various aspects of the family caregivers’ quality of life (QOL) is significant throughout the trajectory of the illness and beyond the patients’ survivorship. Significant gaps, however, remain in our understa...

Purpose: Informal care provided by family and friends of patients with chronic illness, such as cancer, makes an invaluable contribution to the medical system and to society, yet it also imposes challenges that result in increased morbidity and mortality of the caregivers. Researchers studying this topic confront major difficulties in acquiring in...

This article reviews recent studies (published in 2010 and 2011) dealing with cancer caregivers' needs. The studies are organized by the phase of the illness trajectory studied and the association with demographic characteristics and quality-of-life outcomes. The findings indicate that the major issues faced were: caregivers' needs for managing the...