HYBRID EVENT: You can participate in person at Baltimore, Maryland, USA or Virtually from your home or work.
Chiu Sai Yiu Richard, Speaker at Cancer Events
Hong Kong Baptist Hospital, Hong Kong

Abstract:

Health-related quality of life (HRQL) and optimism are different health domains that have been proven as important prognosis factors in cancer patients. A number of studies, in turn, have explored income and medical insurance coverage as predictors of the health domains. As previous studies were mostly conducted in the western countries, the objective of this study was to examine the association in the private health sector in Hong Kong. The study was conducted cross-sectionally with a structured questionnaire in traditional Chinese. HRQL, consisted of physical and mental domains, was assessed with the RAND 12-item Health Survey version 2 (SF-12v2). Optimism was assessed with the Life Orientation Test revised (LOT-R). The two primary predictors were family income and medical insurance coverage. Other covariates included gender, age, education, marital status, number of children, religion, employment status, cancer stage, cancer diagnosis, previous cancer treatments, and previous consultation with oncologists. A sample of 539 cancer patients was identified and a total of 480 questionnaires were collected. After excluding those with substantial amount of missing data, a total of 428 questionnaires were used to determine the association using logistic regression. Scores calculated from SF-12v2 and LOT-R were originally continuous but were divided into two groups using their respective medians. After adjusting for other covariates in the regression models, no significant association was observed with family income as the predictor. Income-related health inequity, as evident in many other countries, seemed to be absent in Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s unique healthcare system and its money culture might be the reasons behind this indifference. Medical insurance coverage, the other primary predictor, was a significant and positive predictor of optimism with p-value less than 0.01. This association was consistent in the subgroup analysis comparing those with previous cancer treatments and those without. Significant difference between the subgroups occurred in the association between mental domain and medical insurance coverage. The association was nonexistent for the subgroup with previous cancer treatments whereas significant and positive correlation was observed for those without. This observation was in fact consistent with some longitudinal studies, in which income had little effect on HRQL for those with previous cancer treatments. Possible explanation may lie in their differences in choosing their treatment plans. The significant association between medical insurance coverage and optimism might be an indication that the cost of cancer treatments was indeed a financial burden to many cancer patients in Hong Kong. Cancer support organization and healthcare practitioners in the private sector should recognize and assist both their medical and financial needs with the aim of improving overall survival rate.

Biography:

Richard is a registered radiation therapist and medical dosimetrist. Since 2008, Richard has worked in different cancer centres located in Hong Kong and Canada. Richard is currently studying part-time at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and is a master degree candidate in Epidemiology and Biostatistics. His research interest is in exploring and improving the quality of life of cancer patients as they are battling the deadly disease. His current research is investigating the risk factors for anxiety and depression in cancer patients.

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