Importance of worthwhile life and social health as predictors of suicide ideation among cancer patients

We identify the most associative factors among existential well-being, health-related quality of life, and health behaviors' sub-factors for cancer patients' suicidal ideation (SI) to develop practical intervention tools for general cancer patients in South Korea.We surveyed 766 cancer patients from two hospitals in South Korea. The eligibility criteria were as follows: 18 years of age or older, diagnosed with cancer, aware of the stage, and capable of understanding the purpose of the study.We performed a multidimensional multivariate analysis to find the factors that are most associated with SI for cancer patients.The results showed that life worthwhile (adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 3.946; 95% CI, 1.64-9.48), social functioning (aOR, 2.817; 95% CI, 1.19-6.65), and living with loved ones (aOR, 0.353; 95% CI, 0.15-0.84) were the most predictive factors for SI.To prevent SI in cancer patients, it might be necessary to help them feel that their lives are worthwhile while helping them maintain a high degree of social health.It is important to help cancer patients value their life and lead the high-quality social life to reduce their SI.