Psychometric Properties of the Cancer and Treatment Distress (CTXD) Measure in Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Patients

Background: This study examines the psychometric properties of a measure of distress specific to cancer and its treatment, as tested in patients receiving hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT).

Methods: With multicenter enrollment, the Cancer and Treatment Distress (CTXD) measure was administered to adults beginning HCT as part of an assessment that included the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CESD), Profile of Mood States, and Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 (SF-36).

Results: From eight transplant centers, 176 of 219 eligible patients completed the assessment. Average age was 46.7 years (SD = 11.9), 59% were male, and the majority were identified as Caucasian (93%). Principal components analysis with the CTXD identified 22 items that loaded onto six factors explaining 69% of the variance: uncertainty, health burden, identity, medical demands, finances, and family strain. Internal consistency reliability for the 22 items was 0.91. The receiver operating characteristic area under the curve was 0.85 (95% CI [0.79, 0.91]), with a cut point of 1.1 resulting in a sensitivity rate of 0.91 and a specificity rate of 0.58. Convergent validity and divergent validity were confirmed with large correlations of the CTXD total score with the CESD, Profile of Mood States, and SF-36 mental health; and a smaller correlation with the SF-36 physical function (r = -0.30).

Conclusions: The CTXD is a reliable and valid measure of distress for HCT recipients and captures nearly all cases of depression on the CESD in addition to detecting distress in those who are not depressed. It has potential value as both a research and clinical screening measure for distress.