Characteristics of Social Relationships in Premenopausal Breast Cancer Patients Receiving Ovarian Function Suppression: A Latent Class Analysis

Introduction: Ovarian function suppression (OFS) is currently recommended by international authoritative guidelines as the preferred first-line endocrine therapy for premenopausal women diagnosed with hormone receptor-positive early-stage breast cancer. However, research indicates a substantial psychological burden: studies show that over 70% of patients undergoing OFS experience moderate to severe depression, which can significantly exacerbate problems related to social relationships and overall quality of life. The urrent literature concerning OFS patients is notably lacking in exploratory research focused on their psychosocial characteristics. This study aims to identify and investigate the characteristics of different social support sensitivity groups among OFS patients.

Methods: This investigation utilized a descriptive cross-sectional design. The study was conducted in Shanghai, China, spanning from October 2023 to July 2024. A total of 1,283 breast cancer patients undergoing OFS were recruited through convenience sampling. Data pertaining to the patients' social relationships were systematically collected via comprehensive, self-reported questionnaires. The final analysis included 1,134 patient records.

Results: Applying latent variable analysis to the dataset of 1,134 patients successfully identified four distinct categories of social relationship profiles among OFS patients. These categories demonstrated significantly different levels of sensitivity to social support. Further analysis of the influencing factors revealed several key variables impacting the social relationships of OFS patients, including age, marital status, monthly income, and the level of economic burden. These factors were found to be statistically significant determinants of social relationship quality.

Conclusion: The findings of this study successfully identified several patient subgroups with varying social support sensitivities. This identification provides crucial, data-driven insights that offer potential clinical application value for developing personalized, targeted interventions aimed at optimizing social support strategies for patients undergoing ovarian function suppression.