22 Resilience and Functional Impairment in Latino Patients with Pediatric Brain Tumor (PBT)

Abstract

Objective:

Children with pediatric brain tumors (PBT) are at increased risk of psychosocial challenges (e.g., emotional distress, social difficulties), which in turn can result in functional impairment, or problems engaging appropriately across settings. These concerns have been shown to be especially pronounced in patients with lower socioeconomic status (SES), which tends to be overrepresented among ethnic minorities, such as Latino populations. On the other hand, resilience (the ability to utilize resources to alleviate stress and overcome adversity) can act as a protective factor against functional impairment. While resilience has been found to be lower among Latino survivors of pediatric cancer, little is known about the potential role of resilience in mitigating functional impairment among Latino patients with PBT. The authors hypothesized poorer resilience and increased functional impairment among Latino patients with PBT compared to normative expectations, in an attempt to explore need for additional support within this population.

Participants and Methods:

42 Latino patients with PBT ages 2-20 (x=11.08 years, SD=5.24) completed neuropsychological evaluation between 2018 and 2022. The sample was split relatively equally in terms of sex (47.6% male, 52.4% female), tumor location (45.2% infratentorial, 54.8% supratentorial), and household language (47.6% predominantly English, 52.4% predominantly Spanish). Outcome variables included Resiliency and Functional Impairment content scales from the Behavior Assessment Scale for Children – Third Edition: Parent Rating Scales (BASC-3: PRS). Standardized T-scores (x=50; SD=10) were derived using age-appropriate normative data, with higher T-scores indicating better resiliency, yet poorer functional impairment. Median household income for specific neighborhoods was used as a proxy for SES.

Results:

The sample as a whole did not deviate from age expectations in terms of resiliency [t(41)=-.469, p=.642] or functional impairment [t(38)=.118, p=.907]. However, when separated by household language, participants from English speaking households demonstrated lower resiliency and increased functional impairment as compared to both normative expectations [t(19)=-2.748, p=.006; t(18)=1.882, p=.038, respectively] and participants from Spanish speaking households [t(40)=-3.327, p=.002; t(37)=2.717, p=.010, respectively]. In contrast, participants from Spanish speaking households performed similarly to same-aged peers in terms of both resiliency [t(21)=1.931, p=.067] and functional impairment [t(19)=-1.969, p=.064]. Furthermore, household language predicted both resiliency [F(2, 39)=8.639, p=.0008] and functional impairment [F(2, 36)=6.203, p=.005] above and beyond SES, explaining an additional 29.4% (p=.0002) and 24.3% (p=.002) of the variation in these variables, respectively.

Conclusions:

Latino patients with PBT from Spanish speaking households had better reported resiliency and lower functional impairment than their counterparts from English speaking households. Given the subjective nature of parent reported outcomes and the importance of appropriately supporting patients and families from underserved populations, the roles of culturally-ingrained protective factors and cultural/linguistic differences in perceiving or articulating distress need further exploration. Future research, including comparison of parent report with objective measurement of impairment, is needed to better understand relationships between home language and these important variables. Additionally, examination of diagnostic and treatment-related factors will be beneficial to determine the best approaches to interventions and resources within this population.