Study Finds High Mental Distress in Adult Survivors

A new study finds high levels of depression, anxiety, fatigue and cognitive difficulties in adult survivors of childhood leukemia. The research involved 132 people ages 18 to 40 who had survived childhood cancer.

49 per cent of participants had clinical symptoms of depression. 41 per cent had clinical symptoms of anxiety. 43 per cent reported significant fatigue, and 28 per cent reported difficulties with various cognitive functions at clinically relevant levels.

Context

These rates are significantly higher than those seen in the general Norwegian adult population for depression and anxiety. In Norway, around 7% to 10% of the adult population experience depression during their lifetime. The prevalence of anxiety is between 15% and 20%.

Background

The study focuses on survivors of acute leukemia, the most common childhood cancer, which now has a over 90% survival rate due to intensive, long-term treatment. The vast majority of those affected by acute leukemia are between 2 and 5 years old. To survive, the child must undergo extremely intensive treatment for around two years. For much of the first year, the child stays in the hospital around the clock, receiving chemotherapy intravenously and into the central nervous system.

Some decades ago, all children who developed acute leukaemia died. Consultant and researcher Magnus Aasved Hjort noted, "Today, we are actually able to save the lives of more than 90% of them."

Implications

Experts argue that current follow-up care ends too early and that lifelong specialized clinics are needed to address late effects. Magnus Aasved Hjort, an Associate Professor of Paediatric Oncology at NTNU and a consultant at St. Olav’s Hospital, believes a dedicated late-effects clinic for childhood cancer survivors should be established. In Sydney, all children who have had cancer are offered follow-up at a specialized outpatient clinic for the rest of their lives. Today, children are followed up by a paediatric oncology department until they turn 18. After that, all follow-up within the specialist healthcare service ends.

Study Details

The research, led by a medical student and supported by NTNU and the Norwegian Cancer Society, surveyed survivors from two major Norwegian hospitals. Anna Franzén, a medical student at NTNU, is the lead author. Participants were recruited from Oslo University Hospital and St. Olav's Hospital in Trondheim.

Franzén said, "It is surprising that so many experience anxiety and depression." The study forms part of Anna Franzén's planned doctoral research. The study is funded by the Norwegian Cancer Society and is led by NTNU’s Department of Psychology, where Professor Trude Reinfjell is the project leader. The article 'Mental Distress, Fatigue and Executive Function in Adult Survivors of Childhood Leukemia and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma' was published in the journal Current Oncology on 1 July 2026.