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Background: In older patients with cancer, depression is difficult to assess because of its heterogeneous clinical expression. The 4-item version of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-4) is quick and easy to administer but has not been validated in this population. The present study was designed to test the diagnostic performance of the GDS-4 in a French cohort of older patients with cancer before treatment., Materials and Methods: Our cross-sectional analysis of data from the Elderly Cancer Patient cohort covered all patients with cancer aged ≥70 years and referred for geriatric assessment at two centers in France between 2007 and 2018. The GDS-4's psychometric properties were evaluated against three different measures of depression: the geriatrician's clinical diagnosis (based on a semistructured interview), the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and a cluster analysis. The scale's sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratios, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) were calculated., Results: In a sample of 2,293 patients (median age, 81 years; women, 46%), the GDS-4's sensitivity and specificity for detecting physician-diagnosed depression were, respectively, 90% and 89%. The positive and negative likelihood ratios were 8.2 and 0.11, and the AUROC was 92%. When considering the subset of patients with data on all measures of depression, the sensitivity and specificity values were, respectively, ≥90% and ≥72%, the positive and negative likelihood ratios were, respectively, ≥3.4 and ≤ 0.11, and the AUROC was ≥91%., Conclusion: The GDS-4 appears to be a clinically relevant, easy-to-use tool for routine depression screening in older patients with cancer., Implications for Practice: Considering the overlap between symptoms of cancer and symptoms of depression, depression is particularly difficult to assess in older geriatric oncology and is associated with poor outcomes; there is a need for a routine psychological screening. Self-report instruments like the 4-item version of the Geriatric Depression Scale appears to be a clinically relevant, easy-to-use tool for routine depression screening in older patients with cancer. Asking four questions might enable physicians to screen older patients with cancer for depression and then guide them toward further clinical evaluation and appropriate care if required., (© 2021 AlphaMed Press.)

Background: Grieving relatives can suffer from numerous consequences like anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and prolonged grief. This study aims to assess the psychological consequences of grieving relatives after patients' death in French palliative care units and their needs for support., Methods: This is a prospective observational multicenter mixed study. Relatives of adult patients with a neoplasia expected to be hospitalized more than 72 h in a palliative care unit for end-of-life issues will be included within 48 h after patient admission. End-of-life issues are defined by the physician at patient admission. Relatives who are not able to have a phone call at 6-months are excluded. The primary outcome is the incidence of prolonged grief reaction defined by an ICG (Inventory Complicate Grief) > 25 (0 best-76 worst) at 6 months after patient' death. Prespecified secondary outcomes are the risk factors of prolonged grief, anxiety and depression symptoms between day 3 and day 5 and at 6 months after patients' death based on an Hospital Anxiety and Depression score (range 0-42) > 8 for each subscale (minimal clinically important difference: 2.5), post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms 6 months after patient' death based on the Impact of Events Scale questionnaire (0 best-88 worst) score > 22, experience of relatives during palliative care based on the Fami-Life questionnaire, specifically built for the study. Between 6 and 12 months after the patient's death, a phone interview with relatives with prolonged grief reactions will be planned by a psychologist to understand the complex system of grief. It will be analyzed with the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. We planned to enroll 500 patients and their close relatives assuming a 25% prolonged grief rate and a 6-month follow-up available in 60% of relatives., Discussion: This study will be the first to report the psychological consequences of French relatives after a loss of a loved one in palliative care units. Evaluating relatives' experiences can provide instrumental insights for means of improving support for relatives and evaluation of bereavement programs., Trial Registration: NCT03748225 registered on 11/19/2018. Recruiting patients.