Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have found that emotional well-being is not an independent factor affecting the prognosis of patients with head and neck cancers. This study appears in the December 1st issue of CANCER.
“The belief that a patient’s psychological state can impact the course and outcome of their cancer is one that has been prominent among patients and medical professionals, alike,” says James C. Coyne, PhD, Co-Leader, Cancer Control and Outcomes Program, Abramson Cancer Center; Professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at Penn; and lead author of the study. “This belief leads people to seek psychotherapy in the hopes of promoting survival. While there can be lots of emotional and social benefits of psychotherapy, patients should not seek such experiences solely on the expectation that they are extending their lives.”
Study participants were enrolled in two Radiation Oncology Group clinical trials and completed a baseline measure of quality of life questionnaire which included an Emotional Well-Being subscale. The outcome measure was overall survival. The study sample included 1,093 patients, and of this group, 646 died during the length of the study. With the coupling of this large sample and the uniformity of treatment and quality of care that is required in a clinical trial, this is one of the methodologically strongest studies in this area to-date.
The researchers found that emotional status was not a predictor of survival among this population. Additionally, no effects were observed when the researchers examined interactions between emotional well-being and study protocol, gender, primary cancer site, or stage of cancer. Therefore, the study reports that “this psychologic variable neither affected progression or death directly, nor functioned as a lurking variable.”
“While this study may not end the debate, it does provide the strongest evidence to-date that psychological factors are not independently prognostic in cancer management,” says Dr. Coyne.
Source: University of Pennsylvania
Related stories:
Women exposed to negative life events at greater risk of breast cancer
Happiness and optimism may play a role against breast cancer while adverse life events can increase the risk of developing the disease, according to a study by Professor Ronit Peled, at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. An article on the study titled "Breast Cancer, Psychological Distress and Life Events among Young Women," was just published in the British journal
BMC Cancer (8:245, August 2008).
Study shows improved quality of life for older women on HRT
New evidence published shows that hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can improve the health related quality of life of older women. HRT guidelines should be reviewed in light of this evidence, say the authors.
Prostate cancer patients undergoing hormone therapy may experience cognitive effects
A recent review of the literature has found that hormone deprivation therapy, a commonly used treatment for prostate cancer, may have subtle adverse effects on cognition in patients-- such as in the ability to recall and concentrate. Published in the September 1, 2008 issue of
Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that clinicians and patients should be aware of these potential effects and watch closely for their appearance.
Cancer 'cure' in mice to be tested in humans
Scientists at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center are about to embark on a human trial to test whether a new cancer treatment will be as effective at eradicating cancer in humans as it has proven to be in mice.
Quality of life predicts cancer survival
Head and neck cancer patients who reported lower physical quality of life were more likely to die from their disease, according to a new study from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. The findings could mean that identifying patients with poor quality of life could also identify patients with particularly aggressive tumors.
Anxiety, mood disorders put cancer patients at risk for PTSD
Breast cancer patients who have a prior history of mood and anxiety disorders are at a much higher risk of experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder following their diagnosis, new research suggests.
Cancer widows are often emotionally isolated
Many Swedish men have no one to turn to for emotional support other than their partners, not even in particularly traumatic situations, such as when suffering from cancer. However, according to new research, the partners of cancer patients also often lack support outside the relationship.
Study examines changes in quality of life after head and neck cancer treatment
In the year following their first treatment, patients with head and neck cancer report declines in their physical quality of life but improvements in their mental health quality of life, according to a report in the March issue of
Archives of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Some types of treatment—especially feeding tube placement, chemotherapy and radiation therapy—were associated with changes in quality of life.