eng Oriental Scientific Publishing Company Biomedical and Pharmacology Journal 0974-6242 2016-12-22 9 3 1107 1110 10.13005/bpj/1056 10715 article Abdollah Farhadi Nasab 1 Moein Foroghi 2 Department of Psychiatry, Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Taleghani hospital, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran,Iran. General Practitioner, Tehran, Iran. Cancer remains a major health dilemma worldwide. The diagnosis of cancer in children imposes a great amount of stress on the family and particularly parents, affecting their mental health. General health of parents plays an important role in continuation of care for the sick child. This study sought to assess the mental health status of the parents of pediatric cancer patients. This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 127 pediatric cancer patients hospitalized in Mofid and Imam Hossein Hospitals in Tehran (92 mothers and 35 fathers). Data were collected using the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) and analyzed with SPSS version 19. The results and the cut-off point of 24 showed that cancer in children affected the mental health of parents in physical symptoms, anxiety, depression and social function subscales. The mental health status of the mothers in physical symptoms, anxiety and depression subscales was significantly worse than that of the fathers (P<0.05). The diagnosis of cancer in children significantly affects the mental health of parents and their ability to care for the sick child. Interventional strategies and counseling services for the parents can effectively promote their mental health and consequently improve the quality of carefortheir children. https://biomedpharmajournal.org/vol9no3/mental-health-status-of-the-parents-of-pediatric-cancer-patients/ Pediatric cancer Parental distress Mental health GHQ-28