Table 1.
Characteristics of the subjects
| Variable | Patients | |
|---|---|---|
| n | % | |
| a) Patient factors | ||
| Gender | 55.7 (SD 10.7, range 21‐91) | |
| Male | 237 | 55.1 |
| Female | 193 | 44.9 |
| Marital status | ||
| Single | 11 | 2.6 |
| Married | 398 | 92.6 |
| Divorced | 12 | 2.8 |
| Widowed | 9 | 2.1 |
| Occupational status | ||
| Working | 97 | 22.6 |
| Not working | 333 | 77.4 |
| Education level | ||
| Less than secondary school | 359 | 83.5 |
| Bachelor's or higher degree | 71 | 16.5 |
| Comorbidities | ||
| 0 | 192 | 44.7 |
| 1 | 139 | 32.3 |
| >2 | 99 | 23.0 |
| Household registration | ||
| Urban | 342 | 79.5 |
| Rural | 88 | 20.5 |
| ECOG | ||
| 0 | 43 | 10.0 |
| 1 | 234 | 54.4 |
| 2 | 94 | 21.9 |
| 3 | 48 | 11.2 |
| 4 | 11 | 2.6 |
| b) Difficulties experienced during diagnosis and treatment processes | ||
| Yearly family income | ||
| >30 000 RMB | 304 | 70.7 |
| <30 000 RMB | 126 | 29.3 |
| Assistance from caregivers | ||
| Yes | 265 | 61.6 |
| No | 165 | 38.4 |
| Interval from symptom to diagnosis | ||
| <1 month | 72 | 16.7 |
| >1 month | 358 | 83.3 |
| Distance between the home and the hospital | ||
| In the same city | 188 | 43.7 |
| In a different city | 242 | 56.3 |
| c) Psychosocial factors | ||
| Depression | ||
| Yes | 191 | 44.4 |
| No | 239 | 55.6 |
| Anxiety | ||
| Yes | 204 | 47.4 |
| No | 226 | 52.6 |
| d) Disease‐ or treatment‐related effects | ||
| Date of diagnosis | ||
| < 12 m | 198 | 46.0 |
| 12‐24 m | 64 | 14.9 |
| 24‐36 m | 57 | 13.3 |
| 36‐48 m | 41 | 9.5 |
| 48‐60 m | 24 | 5.6 |
| >60 m | 46 | 10.7 |
| Disease phase | ||
| Stable | 248 | 57.7 |
| Unstable | 182 | 42.3 |
| Current MM treatment | ||
| Bortezomib | 103 | 24.0 |
| Lenalidomide | 87 | 20.2 |
| Thalidomide | 77 | 17.9 |
| Interferon | 11 | 2.6 |
| Bortezomib + lenalidomide/thalidomide | 21 | 4.9 |
| Not clear or no drug | 131 | 30.5 |
| ASCT | ||
| Yes | 118 | 48.8 |
| No | 124 | 51.2 |
| Treatment‐related toxicities | 3.16 (SD 1.65, range 0‐6) | |
| ≤3 | 173 | 57.9 |
| >3 | 126 | 42.1 |