Effects of contact between cancer patients on their psychosocial problems.

Abstract In this article results are presented of a study on the effects of patient -to-patient support on the psychosocial problems of cancer patients. Data were collected at two points in time from samples of lymphoma and breast cancer patients in accordances with a quasi-experimental, non-equivalent control group design. Regular contacts between fellow patients decreased negative feelings (depression, anxiety and psychological complaints) and increased self-esteem. This was true especially for patient under treatment and those, whose illness had recurred. Regular contacts with other breast cancer patients decreased feelings of uncertainty especially if they had not received relevant information from their doctor. Uncertainty was also reduced in patients with Hodgkin's disease who indicated having received relevant information from their doctor. However, for those Hodgkin's disease patients who indicated that they did not receive relevant information from their specialist, having only a few contacts with fellow sufferers led to an increase in feelings of uncertainty.

[1]  F. Stockdale,et al.  Behavior of cancer patients: A randomized study of the effects of education and peer support groups , 1983, American journal of clinical oncology.

[2]  M. Vachon,et al.  Applying psychiatric techniques to patients with cancer. , 1976, Hospital & community psychiatry.

[3]  K. Charmaz,et al.  Loss of self: a fundamental form of suffering in the chronically ill. , 1983, Sociology of health & illness.

[4]  J. V. Wood,et al.  Social comparison in adjustment to breast cancer. , 1985, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[5]  W W Zung,et al.  Self-rating depression scale in an outpatient clinic. Further validation of the SDS. , 1965, Archives of general psychiatry.

[6]  R. Dyk,et al.  The psychodynamic significance of beliefs regarding the cause of serious illness. , 1956, Psychoanalytic review.

[7]  L. Derogatis,et al.  The prevalence of psychiatric disorders among cancer patients. , 1983, JAMA.

[8]  J. D. Haes,et al.  Klachtenlijst voor kankerpatiënten, eerste ervaringen , 1983 .

[9]  F. Lucente,et al.  Current attitudes of laryngectomy patients. , 1979, The Laryngoscope.

[10]  R. Keith,et al.  Presurgical counseling needs of laryngectomees: A survey of 78 patients , 1978, The Laryngoscope.

[11]  J. Dietz.  Rehabilitation of the cancer patient. , 1969, The Medical clinics of North America.

[12]  H. Krouse,et al.  Cancer as Crisis: The Critical Elements of Adjustment , 1982, Nursing research.

[13]  J. Singer,et al.  ABILITY AND AFFILIATION. , 1965, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[14]  E. Lusk,et al.  A psychological analysis of cancer patients and their next‐of‐kin , 1985, Cancer.

[15]  U. Chetty,et al.  EFFECTS OF IMMEDIATE BREAST RECONSTRUCTION ON PSYCHOSOCIAL MORBIDITY AFTER MASTECTOMY , 1983, The Lancet.

[16]  S. Schachter.  The Psychology Of Affiliation , 1959 .

[17]  K. O. Baxley,et al.  Alopecia: Effect on cancer patients' body image , 1984, Cancer nursing.

[18]  J. Gogan,et al.  Psychological adjustment among pediatric cancer survivors. , 1980, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines.

[19]  J. Singer,et al.  Social comparison—Progress and issues , 1966 .

[20]  J. McIntosh,et al.  Processes of communication, information seeking and control associated with cancer: A selective review of the literature. , 1974, Social science & medicine.

[21]  A. P. Macdonald.  Anxiety, Affiliation, and Social Isolation. , 1970 .

[22]  J. Polivy.  Psychological reactions to hysterectomy: a critical review. , 1974, American journal of obstetrics and gynecology.

[23]  A. Arrowood,et al.  Self-evaluation, self-enhancement, and the locus of social comparison☆ , 1966 .

[24]  E. T. Cooper.  A pilot study on the effects of the diagnosis of lung cancer on family relationships. , 1984, Cancer nursing.

[25]  C. Gotay,et al.  The experience of cancer during early and advanced stages: the views of patients and their mates. , 1984, Social science & medicine.

[26]  Shelley E. Taylor.  Social Cognition and Health , 1982 .

[27]  K. L. Hakmiller,et al.  Threat as a determinant of downward comparison , 1966 .

[28]  B. Tabachnick,et al.  Using Multivariate Statistics , 1983 .

[29]  J. Vaeth.  Body image, self-esteem, and sexuality in cancer patients , 1983 .

[30]  E. Lusk,et al.  Psychosocial status in chronic illness. A comparative analysis of six diagnostic groups. , 1984, The New England journal of medicine.

[31]  R. Friend,et al.  Threat and fear of negative evaluation as determinants of locus of social comparison. , 1973, Journal of personality.

[32]  Stephen R. Wilson,et al.  The effects of self-esteem and situation upon comparison choices during ability evaluation. , 1971 .

[33]  Wright Ls,et al.  Effects of waiting with others on changes in level of felt anxiety. , 1960 .

[34]  L. H. Maurer,et al.  Psychosocial aspects of neoplastic disease: I. Functional status of breast cancer patients during different treatment regimens. , 1980, The American journal of psychiatry.

[35]  M. Lewis,et al.  Differences in crisis reactions among cancer and surgery patients. , 1982, Journal of consulting and clinical psychology.

[36]  H. Gerard,et al.  Fear and social comparison. , 1961, Journal of abnormal and social psychology.

[37]  J. Endicott.  Measurement of Depression in Patients With Cancer , 1984, Cancer.

[38]  P. H. Damsté,et al.  Rehabilitation following laryngectomy; the results of a questionnaire study. , 1972, The British journal of disorders of communication.

[39]  A. Forrest,et al.  The morbidity of mastectomy. , 1972, The British journal of surgery.

[40]  D. A. Kenny,et al.  A quasi-experimental approach to assessing treatment effects in the nonequivalent control group design. , 1975 .

[41]  J. E. Finesinger,et al.  Guilt reactions in patients with cancer , 1953, Cancer.

[42]  D. W. Edwards,et al.  Pelvic genital cancer: body image and sexuality. , 1980, Frontiers of radiation therapy and oncology.

[43]  T. Wills.  Downward Comparison Principles in Social Psychology , 1981 .

[44]  R. Linn,et al.  A general linear model for studying growth. , 1970 .

[45]  C. Lewis,et al.  ESTIMATION AND MODEL COMPARISONS FOR REPEATED MEASURES DATA , 1984 .

[46]  D. Spiegel,et al.  Group Support for Patients With Metastatic Cancer: A Randomized Prospective Outcome Study , 1981 .

[47]  C. Spielberger,et al.  STAI manual for the State-trait anxiety inventory ("self-evaluation questionnaire") , 1970 .

[48]  M. Bard.  The price of survival for cancer victims , 1966 .

[49]  A. Glicksman,et al.  Cancer patients: Knowledge and attitudes , 1977 .

[50]  T. Morris,et al.  Psychological and social adjustment to mastectomy. A two‐year follow‐up study , 1977, Cancer.

[51]  A. Weisman,et al.  Coping with cancer through self-instruction: a hypothesis. , 1979, Journal of Human Stress.

[52]  J. Pruyn,et al.  Self-help in cancer patients: A review of studies on the effects of contacts between fellow-patients , 1986 .

[53]  B. Stoll,et al.  Coping with Cancer Stress , 1986, Springer Netherlands.

[54]  C. Spielberger,et al.  Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory , 1970 .

[55]  H. Goldsmith,et al.  Role of the surgeon in the rehabilitation of the breast cancer patient , 1971, Cancer.

[56]  A. Peck.  Emotional reactions to having cancer. , 1972, CA: a cancer journal for clinicians.

[57]  E. Anstice..  The emotional operation. 1. , 1970, Nursing times.

[58]  W. Zung.  A SELF-RATING DEPRESSION SCALE. , 1965, Archives of general psychiatry.

[59]  Jeffrey Pfeffer,et al.  Uncertainty, Secrecy, and the Choice of Similar Others , 1978 .

[60]  P. Maguire.  The Psychological and Social Sequelae of Mastectomy , 1976 .

[61]  Shelley E. Taylor.  Hospital Patient Behavior: Reactance, Helplessness, or Control? , 1979 .

[62]  L. Festinger.  A Theory of Social Comparison Processes , 1954 .

[63]  C. Wortman,et al.  Interpersonal Relationships and Cancer: A Theoretical Analysis , 1979 .