Visible physical impairment and psychological adjustment among pediatric cancer survivors

Abstract

Because psychological and psychiatric assessments of childhood cancer survivors have revealed a high rate of psychiatric sequelae, the relationship between the degree of physical impairment resulting from cancer treatment and the psychosocial adjustment problems of survivors was investigated. Ratings of physical impairment were based on the visibility of physical residua and the functional limitations they imposed. The psychosocial adjustment of survivors is apparently not significantly related to the severity of physical impairment.