Abstract
BACKGROUND: Grief counseling has become relatively established and is widely used among the families of cancer patients, effectively alleviating their psychological pain. However, in China, due to the influence of Confucianism and other traditional cultures, people generally adhere to the belief of "reincarnation to avoid death", focusing more on themes of life, such as eugenics and longevity, and paying less attention to matters related to death, including death education and grief counseling. Currently, grief counseling in China is still in an exploratory stage, and there is relatively little research on the psychological status of family members of patients with terminal tumors. AIM: To investigate the psychological effects of grief counseling on family members of terminal cancer patients. METHODS: This study was designed as a randomized controlled trial that utilized convenience sampling to select family members of terminal tumor patients who were admitted to the hospice ward of the Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University from January to June 2025 as research subjects. All participants received conventional symptomatic supportive treatment and palliative care. Additionally, the intervention group benefited from extra grief counseling. RESULTS: The Distress Thermometer (DT) score of the control group slightly decreased compared to before the intervention, but the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). In contrast, the DT score of the intervention group decreased significantly compared to before the intervention, with a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05). After the intervention, the DT score of the intervention group was lower than that of the control group, and the difference was also statistically significant (P < 0.05). After the intervention, the intervention group performed better DT level than the control group, with a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05), the intervention group outperformed the control group in terms of depression and anxiety, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Grief counseling can help alleviate the psychological pain and negative emotions experienced by family members of patients with terminal malignant tumors.