Comparing Parent and Child Reports of School Functioning as Predictors of Neurocognitive Test Performance in Hispanic/Latino Survivors of Childhood Leukemia/Lymphoblastic Lymphoma

INTRODUCTION: Survivors of childhood leukemia and lymphoblastic lymphoma are at risk of treatment-related cognitive sequelae and poor educational outcomes. Child self-report could be a resource-efficient screening tool for identifying those in need of further assessment and intervention; however, it has not been empirically evaluated. This study investigated parent- and child-reported school functioning as predictors of performance on objective cognitive and academic measures in school-age Hispanic/Latino survivors. METHODS: One hundred and six Hispanic/Latino survivors of leukemia and lymphoblastic lymphoma, ages 6-12 years, completed neurocognitive assessments. Parent- and child-reported school functioning was measured using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 Generic Core Scales. Multivariate regression models examined associations between parent-report and child self-report of school functioning and performance in cognitive and academic domains, adjusted for relevant demographic and treatment covariates. The model fit of parent and child as predictors was compared using the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC). Child age was explored as a moderating factor. RESULTS: Higher child-reported school functioning was significantly associated with better Processing Speed (p < 0.001), Working Memory (p = 0.038), and Reading performance (p = 0.033). In contrast, higher parent-reported school functioning was only significantly associated with better Processing Speed (p = 0.026). Models using child self-report showed stronger associations with all outcomes and demonstrated better fit to the data, as indicated by lower AIC values, compared to models using parent-report. CONCLUSION: Results highlight the potential utility of child-reported school functioning in future screening efforts to identify school-age survivors in need of additional evaluation or support.