title: The Validity of the Distress Thermometer in Greek Colon Cancer Patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although screening for distress is a crucial part of psycho-social care for cancer patients, there has not been a validation study for this purpose in Greece. The purpose of this study was to evaluate for the first time the psychometric properties of the Greek translation of the Distress Thermometer (DT) and Problem List (PL) in Greek colorectal cancer patients (CRC).
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were 84 CRC inpatients of the 1st Surgical Propedeutic Department of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki with a mean age of 70.8±9.5 years. Participants completed the DT, PL and the Hospital Anxiety and -Depression Scale (HADS).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Cronbach's alpha coefficient in the DT was 0.795. Patients' mean score in the DT was 5.7±2.74, while the mean number of the reported problems in the PL was 18.85±5.50 and the mean total score of the HADS was 15.61±6.95. ROC-analysis supported that a cut-off score of 7 gives the optimal sensitivity and specificity for the DT.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The index sample has manifested high levels of distress, which correspond to high need for support and improvement of the patient-provider relationship. This is probably a difficult task, since the Greek healthcare system has minimal experience of providing psycho-oncology care. The present study has indicated that the DT can be reliably used in the Greek clinical setting. Future studies, along with state provision, are essential in order to offer Greek cancer patients state-of-the-art and comprehensive care.
authors.affiliation: 2nd Department of Psychiatry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, University General Hospital of Thessaloniki AHEPA, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Antoniadis
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lavrentiadis
authors.forename: V N
authors.initials: VN
authors.lastname: Papadopoulos
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ierodiakonou
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Garyfallos
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011594:Psychometrics; D011788:Quality of Life; D012372:ROC Curve; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires