OBJECTIVE: This article provided a comprehensive scoping review, synthesizing existing literature on the financial distress faced by breast cancer patients. It examined the factors contributing to financial distress, the impact on patients, coping mechanisms employed, and potential alleviation methods. The goal was to organize existing evidence and highlight possible directions for future research.
METHODS: We followed the scoping review framework proposed by the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) to synthesize and report evidence. We searched electronic databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library, for relevant literature. We included English articles that met the following criteria: (a) the research topic was financial distress or financial toxicity, (b) the research subjects were adult breast cancer patients, and (c) the article type was quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods research. We then extracted and integrated relevant information for reporting.
RESULTS: After removing duplicates, 5459 articles were retrieved, and 43 articles were included based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The articles addressed four main themes related to financial distress: factors associated with financial distress, impact on breast cancer patients, coping mechanisms, and potential methods for alleviation. The impact of financial distress on patients was observed in six dimensions: financial expenses, financial resources, social-psychological reactions, support seeking, coping care, and coping lifestyle. While some studies reported potential methods for alleviation, few discussed the feasibility of these solutions.
CONCLUSIONS: Breast cancer patients experience significant financial distress with multidimensional impacts. Comprehensive consideration of possible confounding factors is essential when measuring financial distress. Future research should focus on exploring and validating methods to alleviate or resolve this issue.

This paper empirically investigates the impact of cognitive board diversity in education, expertise, and tenure facets on financial distress likelihood in the emerging economy of China. This study examines how this relationship varies across State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and Non-State-Owned Enterprises (NSOEs). Paper argues that the Chinese stock market, as a typical emerging market, is an excellent laboratory for studying the impact of board diversity on the probability of financial distress. Its underdeveloped financial system and inadequate investor protection leave firms unprotected from financial hardship. A sample of 12,366 observations from 1,374 firms from 2010 to 2018 shows that cognitive diversity qualities are positively linked with Z-score, implying that directors with different educational backgrounds, financial skills, and tenures can assist in reducing the probability of financial distress. Cognitive board diversity reduces the likelihood of financial distress in SOEs and NSOEs. However, tenure diversity is insignificant in all cases. Furthermore, the robustness model \"two-step system Generalized Methods of Moments (GMM)\" demonstrated a positive association between educational diversity, financial expertise, and financial distress scores. The results have significant implications for researchers, managers, investors, regulators, and policymakers.

Previous studies have reported high prevalence of psychosocial distress among lung cancer patients in Western countries, but the prevalence of distress in Chinese patients is not established. The study objectives were to report the prevalence of and factors associated with psychosocial distress in a sample of hospitalised patients in China and to implement distress screening in one thoracic specialty department. In this cross-sectional study, adult patients completed a self-reported demographic and clinical questionnaire and the distress thermometer with the problem list. Distress was dichotomised (high vs. low) and compared. Regression analyses were used to determine which variables were associated with psychosocial distress. One hundred eighty-six of 420 patients (38.6%) reported distress ≥4/10. They were unemployed, had New Rural Cooperative Medical System (NRCMS) insurance and Stage IV cancer. NRCMS insurance contributed to the likelihood of high distress and worry. Patients reported significant psychosocial distress during hospitalisation related to practical, emotional and physical problems. In this case study, staff reported they screened consecutive patients but there were no available referrals after discharge. We concluded it may be premature to screen patients for distress prior to instituting resources to establish services. To do otherwise is premature in ensuring patients\' relief.