How parenting concerns affect mothers with cancer
New York, May 7: Parenting concerns put mothers with advanced cancer at higher risk of psychological distress while decreasing their quality of life as well as day-to-day physical functioning, a study says.
The study, published in the journal Cancer, also suggested that mothers with metastatic cancer (those that spread to other sites in the body) had, on average, higher depression and anxiety scores than did the general population.
"Among women with metastatic cancer, their health-related quality of life is powerfully interlinked with their parenting concerns about the impact of their illness on their minor children," said co-author Eliza Park, Assistant Professor at University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill in the US.
"It appears to equally contribute to someone's assessment of their quality of life as some of the clinical variables we routinely ask about," Park added.
For the study, the researchers conducted an online survey of 224 women who had stage IV solid tumour cancer -- cancer that had metastasised or spread elsewhere in the body -- and at least one child under the age of 18 years.
The researchers found that their emotional well-being scores were also lower than for all adults with cancer.
The researchers also determined a mother's emotional well-being was significantly linked with whether she had communicated with her children about her illness and her concerns about how her illness will financially impact her children.
"Parenting-related factors contributed to the amount of variation you see in quality of life almost equally as something like your functional status," Park said.
The findings point to a need for greater support for mothers with metastatic cancer, the researchers noted.
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Mamata Banerjee walks out of NITI Aayog meeting, allowed only 5 minutes to speak
New Delhi: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee walked out of NITI Aayog's 9th Governing Council meeting on Saturday, July 27, in New Delhi. According to Banerjee, she was allowed to speak for only five minutes, which led to her departure from the meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Banerjee expressed her frustration to reporters, stating, "I said the central government should not discriminate against state governments. I wanted to speak but was allowed only five minutes. People before me spoke for 10-20 minutes. I was the only one from the opposition who was participating but still, I was not allowed to speak. This is insulting."
The meeting aims to foster participative governance and collaboration between the Centre and state governments, focusing on making India a developed nation by 2047. The council includes all state chief ministers, lieutenant governors of Union Territories, and several Union ministers, with Prime Minister Modi serving as the chairman.
Key themes discussed include access, quality, and efficiency of drinking water, electricity, health care, schooling, and land and property digitization. Recommendations from the 3rd National Conference of chief secretaries held in December last year were also reviewed.
NITI Aayog in 2023 was entrusted with preparing a vision document to help India become a USD 30 trillion economy by 2047. This document must consolidate 10 sectoral thematic visions like economic growth, social progress, environmental sustainability, and good governance into a combined vision for "Viksit Bharat @2047."
