Multidimensional determinants of psychological adjustment to cancer

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between psychological adjustment and illness-related, demographic, intrapersonal, family and socio-ecological variables. A total of 132 men and women receiving active cancer treatment completed a battery of instruments designed to measure global psychological functioning, depression, anxiety, coping strategies, domestic and extended family relations, social support quantity and perceived quality, and satisfaction with the health care system. Results revealed that the majority of subjects were experiencing little or no psychological distress; however, 30-35% reported experiencing clinically significant levels of depression, anxiety or global adjustment difficulties. Results further revealed that coping strategies characterized by avoidance or acceptance-resignation, family disturbance and quantity and perceived quality of social support distinguished good versus poor adjustment and were most predictive of psychological distress in this sample.

Using two factor structures of the Mental Adjustment to Cancer (MAC) scale for assessing adaptation to breast cancer

“…r= −0.73, r= −0.55, respectively). Typically, disease staging parallels perceived threat and symptom intensity, and Rodrigue et al (1994) demonstrated that perceived severity of illness is highly predictive of psychological distress. Thus, it would follow that, for women with Stage IV disease, fatalism would be more related to their level of psychological distress compared to Stage II participants; conversely, differences in disease threat may also account for the greater inverse association between fighting spirit and psychological distress for Stage II participants compared to Stage IV participants.…”

Coping-Related Variables Associated with Individual Differences in Adjustment to Cancer

“…In many studies, type and stage of cancer were unrelated to psychosocial adjustment (Gall, Miguez de Renart, & Boonstra, 2000;Parker et al, 2003;Schnoll et al, 2002). Medical treatment and side effects were related to psychosocial outcomes in a study by Rodrigue, Behen, and Tumlin (1994) but not in a study by Bardwell et al (2006). Even cancer recurrence has failed to predict adjustment difficulties in some studies (Carver et al, 2005;Parker et al, 2003).…”

Anxiety, Depression and Worry in Gastrointestinal Cancer Patients Attending Medical Follow-Up Control Visits

“…To that end, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HAD) (20) was used in parallel with the numerical 0-10 ratings. Most of the previous studies of anxiety and depression in cancer patients are concerned with diagnoses other than gastrointestinal cancer (7,8,10). So far, this group has been insufliciently studied from a psychosocial point of view.…”

“…Of 250 cancer patients newly admitted to in-or outpatient units, 47% qualified for a DSM-111 diagnosis (6) and 68% of these suffered from adjustment disorders, with depression or anxiety as the central symptom (5). From studies of cancer patients at various stages of their disease (2 weeks to 5 years after diagnosis) report up to 35% of patients suffering from psychosocial distress (7,8), whereas in others, no data concerning time after diagnosis are reported (9-1 I). Reported rates of depression have ranged from 5% in patients at a mean of 3 years (2 weeks-23 years) after diagnosis (12) to 50% in a cancer patient group referred for psychiatric consultation ( 13).…”