Distress factors in the determination of palliative care for ethnically diverse women with gynecologic cancer

16 Background: Versions of the Distress Thermometer have been used and validated widely, but studies of ethnically diverse populations has been limited. A modifed version of the Thermometer is used to understand factors affecting an African American(AA), inner-city population in order to improve access and utilization of palliative care services in a large, ethnically diverse metropolitan area. Methods: A cross-sectional study of women recieving cancer therapy in New Orleans, LA in 2013-14 was conducted. Subjects completed modified Distress Thermometer surveys which captured levels of distress and assessed predefined factors that could impact distress.Demographics were collected, and descriptive and comparative analyses were performed. Results: 49 Caucasian and 34 AA subjects were analyzed. Overall distress rating distributions were similar between the two groups. AA subjects cited family factors as a cause of distress more often than Causasians. (p < 0.006) AA subjects were also more likely to indicate difficulty with partners and overall lack of support as stressing factors than Caucasians. In subjects who reported distress scores greater than 4, AA subjects cited emotional and physical factors more frequently than Caucasians as a cause for distress. (p < 0.05) 11.11% AA subjects vs 3.57% Caucasians cited spiritual factors as a cause of distress. Conclusions: AA women with gynecologic cancer are more likely to cite familial, emotional, physical and perhaps spiritual factors as factors affecting distress than Caucasian women. These findings could be used to target Palliative Care resources more effectively in an ethnically diverse population.