Can posttraumatic growth after breast cancer promote positive coping?—A cross‐lagged study

Abstract

Objectives The diagnosis of breast cancer can be associated with significant emotional distress, yet, over time, cancer survivors also may experience positive psychological changes labeled posttraumatic growth (PTG). Two alternative paths between coping strategies and PTG were tested among breast cancer patients, employing longitudinal design: Would PTG after medical treatment of breast cancer lead to an increase in reporting positive coping strategies; alternatively, would positive coping strategies after medical treatment of breast cancer lead to increased PTG. Methods A longitudinal study was conducted among 198 breast cancer patients who completed validated self‐report scales, at five time points: at 3 months after completing active medical treatment (T1); after 6 months (T2); after 1 year (T3); after 2 years (T4); and after 7 years (T5). The current study analyzes three time points: T1, T3, and T5 using structural equation modeling. Results Our results support the path that describes the first alternative, that higher report of PTG after medical treatment of breast cancer patients would lead to increased report of positive coping strategies. In addition, positive coping strategies were found to be positively linked to PTG after 6 months, and the link was slightly stronger after 2 years. Nevertheless, 7 years after diagnosis, no association was found between positive coping strategies and PTG measurements. Conclusions Finding positive meaning after coping with breast cancer, as reflected in PTG, may be a significant resource in coping with cancer, and it may lead to increase of positive coping strategies.

Profiles of resources and posttraumatic growth among cancer and psoriatic patients compared to non-clinical sample

“…Our primary explorative results can be interesting for PTG studies in general because they emphasize the significance of sample heterogeneity, which may cause the reevaluation of many inconclusive results in PTG studies ( Pat-Horenczyk et al, 2016 ). In addition, it seems that even patients representing the same clinical entity can experience PTG much differently, which is nearly disregarded in the literature to date ( Hamama-Raz, Pat-Horenczyk, Roziner, Perry, & Stemmer, 2019 ). Importantly, we did not find any significant relationship between PTG and the studied medical variables since the diagnosis date in either cancer or psoriasis.…”

“…The person-centered design provides insight above that which can be reached using variable-centered framework. For example, it is notable that there is no one pattern of PTG that correlates to what all individuals experience from the same type of traumatic event, especially patients who are struggling with illness-related trauma ( Hamama-Raz et al, 2019 , Pat-Horenczyk et al, 2016 ). From the more general perspective, the results obtained by us may be useful in clinical work with chronically ill patients ( Bellver-Pérez et al, 2019 , Finck et al, 2018 , Kuba et al, 2019 ).…”

Mulheres diagnosticadas com câncer de mama: impacto do crescimento pós-traumático.

“…Como já abordado anteriormente, sabe-se que os benefícios percebidos, aprendizagens e aspectos positivos decorrentes do trauma colaboram para o desenvolvimento do crescimento pós-traumático (Santos, Simone, Pinhabel, Galhardo, & Carniel, 2019). No entanto, depois de um período em que se dá a descoberta do diagnóstico e das abordagens terapêuticas, as estratégias de enfrentamento para o crescimento pós-traumático não se mostram mais tão eficazes como no início (Raz-Hamama, Pat-Horenczyk, Roziner, Perry & Stemmer, 2019).…”

“…A esse respeito, Tedeschi & Calhoum (2004) discorrem que quanto mais traumático e avassalador for o evento maior e mais rápido o CPT se desenvolverá. No entanto quando indivíduos já passaram por um acontecimento traumático anterior, o impacto desse evento para que ocorra o CPT pode ser reduzido, visto que não é o primeiro evento traumático vivenciado, o que pode ajudar a compreender o motivo dessas mulheres não verem o câncer de mama como algo tão traumático comparado com as que não experienciaram outro evento traumático (Raz-Hamama, Pat-Horenczyk, Roziner, Perry & Stemmer, 2019) Ao interpretar os dados desse estudo algumas limitações devem ser discutidas, como o fato de as participantes terem vivenciado apenas um tipo de evento traumático, o câncer de mama. Outro aspecto foi o tamanho reduzido da amostra que impossibilitou resultados mais significativos, somando-se ao tempo limitado para a coleta de dados.…”

Posttraumatic growth and its measurement: A closer look at the PTGI’s psychometric properties and structure

“…The positive psychological change can happen in (at least) one of the following domains: (1) interpersonal relationships, (2) new possibilities, (3) personal strength, (4) spiritual change, and (5) appreciation of life (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1996). PTG has been mostly studied in samples of war veterans (Mark et al, 2018), people who survived a natural disaster (García et al, 2015), victims of sexual violence (Bakaityté et al, 2020), oncological patients, or people diagnosed with other serious diseases (Hamama-Raz et al, 2019). Currently, research is focusing on COVID-19 pandemic and its relationship with PTG (Hamam et al, 2021).…”