Correlation between Disease Uncertainty and Psychological Distress in Hospitalized Patients with Primary Liver Cancer

Abstract

Objective: To explore the correlation between disease uncertainty and psychological distress in hospitalized patients with primary liver cancer, providing a basis for clinical nursing interventions. Methods: A convenient sampling method was used to select 82 patients with primary liver cancer from a tertiary first-class hospital in Guangzhou from September 2023 to March 2024 as the research subjects. General information questionnaires, the Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale-Adult Version (MUIS-A), and the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) were used for investigation. Pearson correlation analysis and linear regression analysis were performed to explore the relationship between the two. Results: The total score of disease uncertainty in hospitalized patients with primary liver cancer was (99.20 ± 8.79), and the total score of psychological distress was (22.87 ± 9.46), both at a medium level. There was a positive correlation between disease uncertainty and psychological distress (r = 0.360, P < 0.01), and the ambiguity dimension had the strongest correlation with psychological distress (r = 0.399, P < 0.01). Regression analysis showed that the ambiguity dimension had a significant predictive effect on psychological distress (β = 0.399, P < 0.01). Conclusion: There is a close correlation between disease uncertainty and psychological distress in patients with primary liver cancer. In clinical nursing, it is necessary to pay special attention to patients’ ambiguity regarding disease symptoms and prognosis. Targeted health education should be carried out to reduce their uncertainty, thereby improving their psychological state.