Özet:

OBJECTIVE: Parents of a child with cancer faces many physical and psychological challenging factors during the diagnosis and treatment process. This study was conducted to examine the level of anxiety and the factors affecting anxiety in this parent group. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was conducted in a pediatric hematology treatment center between June and July 2021 after obtaining ethical permissions. The 'STAI anxiety scale questionnaire' was administered to 100 parents whose children were diagnosed with cancer. The data was evaluated with appropriate statistical methods (chi-square, Anova and mean-t-test) selected according to the distribution feature; p<0.05 was accepted as statistically significant. RESULTS: It was observed that the number of children in families with high income was significantly lower (p=0.023). As the education level increased, the STAI anxiety scale scores of the parents also increased statistically significantly (p=0.019). It was observed that the child's receiving treatment, being in remission, or relapsed illness did not have a significant effect on the parental anxiety level (p=0.785). CONCLUSIONS: Parents' high education level and reduced income were found to be associated with increased anxiety levels. Informative meetings to be held at regular intervals with parents in company of psychologists can have a reducing effect on anxiety.