Social Support in Parents of Children With Cancer: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Objectives: Parents of children with cancer (PCCs) experience stress as they navigate managing their child's illness. Arguably, social support is critical to PCCs' well-being. This review examines the literature on social support in PCCs.

Methods: Studies of social support in PCCs were collected from PsycINFO, CINHAL, and MEDLINE. Data were extracted from 37 studies published between January 2010 and May 2021 related to the conceptualization, measurement, and availability of social support in PCCs. Relationships between PCCs' social support, well-being, and unique parent and child factors were also synthesized. Risks of biases were assessed using domains of the Effective Public Health Practice Project.

Results: Social support in PCCs is conceptualized as (a) perceived availability and satisfaction with social support and (b) social support seeking as a coping strategy. Parents of children with cancer report receiving as much or more support than typical adults, but PCCs engage in less social support seeking. Family and significant others are the most prevalent sources of support, and emotional support is the most received type of social support. Social support is positively related to well-being and negatively related to distress, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress. Findings related to social support differences based on parent and child unique factors were minimal and present opportunities for future research. The risk of bias was generally low, with caution that most studies cannot demonstrate directionality of findings due to cross-sectional study designs.

Conclusions: Given the consistent positive association between social support and well-being in PCCs, clinicians should assess and encourage social support for this vulnerable population.

Keywords: oncology; parent psychosocial functioning; social support; systematic review.