Table 1.
Demographic and sample characteristics at baseline
| Mean (SD) |
Statistic | p value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Control group (n = 34) | Intervention group (n = 32) | |||
| Gender | χ2 = 0.29 | 0.58 | ||
| Boys [n (%)] | 19 (55.9 %) | 20 (62.5 %) | ||
| Age (years) | 10.67 (4.71) | 10.13 (3.51) | t = 0.53 | 0.60 |
| Socioeconomic status | χ2 = 0.63 | 0.73 | ||
| Upper middle class [n (%)] | 7 (21 %) | 7 (22 %) | ||
| Middle class | 20 (58 %) | 16 (50 %) | ||
| Lower middle class | 7 (21 %) | 9 (28 %) | ||
| Type of disease | χ2 = 0.69 | 0.95 | ||
| Leukemia [n (%)] | 10 (29 %) | 9 (28 %) | ||
| Hodgkin's lymphoma [n (%)] | 6 (18 %) | 4 (13 %) | ||
| Ewing's sarcoma [n (%)] | 4 (12 %) | 5 (15 %) | ||
| Medulloblastoma | 3 (9 %) | 4 (13 %) | ||
| Other solid tumor | 11 (32 %) | 10 (31 %) | ||
| Type of current treatment | χ2 = 0.11 | 0.98 | ||
| Chemotherapy | 14 (41.2 %) | 14 (43.8 %) | ||
| Biological therapy | 6 (17.6 %) | 5 (15.6 %) | ||
| Combination of therapies | 7 (20.6 %) | 7 (21.8 %) | ||
| Other | 7 (20.6 %) | 6 (18.8 %) | ||
| Hope | 38.07 (6.48) | 38.11 (5.59) | t = 0.03 | 0.97 |
| Positive emotions | 18.55 (3.68) | 18.72 (3.51) | t = 0.19 | 0.85 |
| Negative emotions | 12.65 (3.87) | 12.38 (2.85) | t = 0.27 | 0.74 |
| Optimism | 16.42 (3.99) | 16.01 (3.38) | t = 0.41 | 0.65 |
| Health-related quality of life | 46.50 (24.01) | 44.91 (22.90) | t = 0.28 | 0.78 |
| Psychological distress (GSI) | 0.94 (0.52) | 0.97 (0.35) | t = 0.35 | 0.79 |
Note Other solid tumor = Specific types of tumors, such as nervous system tumors, retinoblastoma, and nephroblastoma