The use of religious/spiritual coping among patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy treatment

Abstract

Objective: to investigate the use of religious/spiritual coping among people with cancer undergoing chemotherapy. Methods: a quantitative, descriptive and cross-sectional study of 101 patients undergoing intravenous chemotherapy in an oncology outpatients center in a public hospital in Minas Gerais, made in the first semester of 2011. For data collection, an interview was held, using a questionnaire for characterizing the sample and the Brief Spiritual/Religious Coping Scale.Results: all subjects made use of religious/spiritual coping (mean=3.67; sd=0.37); the younger individuals, those with no religion and those who consider spiritual support unimportant tend to use coping negatively; individuals who would like to receive spiritual support and who participate in support groups for cancer patients, on the other hand, use coping positively. Conclusions: the study reinforces that religious/spiritual coping is an important strategy for coping with cancer, and contributes to an understanding of the same as a useful tool for spiritual care.

Factors related to the perceived stigmatization of people living with HIV

“…We found that most had a religion, similar to other studies of people with HIV (14,(22)(23) and other studies with people living in similar situations such as cancer patients (24) and chronic renal disease patients (25) , so that clinical evolution and the course of serious illnesses lead to the rediscovery of the importance of spirituality, strengthening hope in enduring physical and emotional distress related to the disease and treatment (24)(25) . Although most participants in this study were heterosexual, which can be justified by the stimulus to early sexuality and the possibility of paid sex (26) , homosexuals are the ones who are strongly stigmatized and linked to large manifestations of exclusion and blamed for HIV infection (22,27) ; this is similar to what happens with drug users, being labelled and socially excluded (6,18,22,27) .…”

Effectiveness of prayer in reducing anxiety in cancer patients

“…Findings of a previous study (20) demonstrated that cancer patients submitted to chemotherapy used religious/ spiritual coping methods for dealing with the disease and would have liked to receive spiritual care from health professionals. In this sense, the use of comprehensive practices or even practices directed toward patients' spiritual dimension can be an important strategy to help cope with cancer, its treatment and any consequent anxiety.…”

Enfrentamento religioso/espiritual em pessoas com câncer em quimioterapia: revisão integrativa da literatura

“…Dessa maneira, apoiar o cuidado na espiritualidade pode ser imprescindível, uma vez que a mesma ocupa lugar de destaque na vida da maioria dos indivíduos. Fato é que a sua significância deve ser avaliada independente da sua adoção como ferramenta terapêutica, pois, o Coping Religioso/ Espiritual (CRE) pode desempenhar um papel tanto positivo como negativo, no manejo e enfrentamento da doença (5) .…”

“…Quando positivo, abrange estratégias que proporcionam efeito benéfico ao indivíduo, como procurar amor/ proteção de Deus ou maior conexão com forças transcendentais. O CRE negativo envolve estratégias que geram consequências prejudiciais, como por exemplo, redefinir o estressor como punição divina (5) .…”

“…Enfrentamento de esquiva ou não adaptativo, por outro lado, refere-se principalmente aos métodos pelos quais os indivíduos tentam evitar enfrentar problemas mentalmente e/ou fisicamente, distanciando-se do estressor, incluindo estratégias tais como a negação e o uso de álcool/drogas (5)(6) .…”