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Longitudinal Identity Study of Childhood Cancer Survivors
Sponsor: KU Leuven
Summary
The study investigators plan to conduct a longitudinal questionnaire study in adolescents and emerging adults (14-25 years of age at the start of the study) who survived childhood cancer to chart their identity development and broader social functioning. Additionally, the functioning of these survivors will be related to the functioning of their parents and siblings. The investigators shall focus especially on the current experience and impact of the earlier cancer experience. They will investigate to what extent the experience of a life-threatening disease has an effect on the daily life of survivors and over time and how the survivors develop through the course of adolescence and emerging adulthood on the psychosocial level. The formation of an adult identity is a very challenging task during adolescence and the way to adulthood and the fact that these youth had cancer during their childhood may especially complicate this process of identity formation. Furthermore, both parental and sibling functioning will be taken into account, which will allow us to examine inter-generational mechanisms (thus parental functioning that possibly impacts youth functioning and vice versa) and sibling functioning in these families. To investigate the latter, at each timepoint of the longitudinal study a sibling between 14 and 25 years of age at the start of the study will be included (if there is more than one sibling in a family, ideally the sibling who is closest in age will be the one who participates in the study). Moreover, a community sample that is matched on age and sex with the survivor of pediatric cancer will be assessed. This will allow the investigators to make well-founded comparisons regarding identity development and broader psychosocial functioning.
Official title: The Long-term Impact of Pediatric Cancer on Adolescents, Emerging Adults, and Their Family: Identity, Psychosocial Functioning, and Development
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
14 Years - 25 Years
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Enrollment
126
Start Date
2018-08-28
Completion Date
2024-12
Last Updated
2024-08-21
Healthy Volunteers
Not specified
Conditions
Interventions
Questionnaire bundle
Questionnaires on identity formation and psychosocial functioning, assessed and reported at baseline, one year later, two years later, and five years later.
Obtaining information from survivors' medical file
After obtaining informed consent, we will access the medical file of participants to obtain information on the diagnosis, time of diagnosis, treatment duration, type of treatment, and relapse (when applicable).
Locations (1)
Gasthuisberg
Leuven, Vlaams-Brabant, Belgium