Cancer and Psychological Factors Presented by Ana Freire and Ayana Motegi

Introduction Who gets cancer? What types of cancer are likely to develop? What are the risk factors for cancer?

Who Gets Cancer? 1/2 of all men and 1/3 of all women in the US will develop cancer during their lifetimes. About 80% of all cancers occur in people over the age of 55. More than 1500 people die of cancer everyday.

What Types of Cancer Are Likely to Develop? (cancer cases by site & sex) MALE Prostate 30% (189,000) Lung & bronchus 14% (90,200) Colon & rectum 11% (72,600) Urinary bladder 7% (41,500) FEMALE Breast 31% (203,500) Lung & bronchus 12% (79,200) Colon & rectum 12% (75,700) Uterine Corpus 6% (39,300)

What are the Risk factors for Cancer? Environment Genetics Nutrition Psychology/Personality

Environmental risk Factors Smoking Chemicals (benzene, asbestos, vinyl chloride) Radiation (IR, UV) Unproven risks—pesticides, electromagnetic fields (microwaves and cell phones), toxic wastes, and nuclear power plant

Genetic Risk factors Close genetic relationship to people with a history of cancer (sister, brother, parents, and possibly grandparents) Example: women with a first degree (mother, sister, or daughter) family history are about 2 times more likely to develop breast cancer than women who do not have a family history of the disease.

Nutritive Risk Factors Diets heavy in animal fats Alcohol High simple carbohydrate Processed foods Low intake of fibers, fruits, and vegetables

CANCER: PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS Personality: emotions, coping mechanisms, how the person responds to stress and deals with it, etc. Psychological factors are important to take into consideration BEFORE and AFTER cancer is diagnosed: BEFORE: for preventative purposes. AFTER: as part of the treatment.

BEFORE More than the number of stressful events that the person encountered throughout life, what is important is the way the person reacts to those stressors  PERSONALITY. Personality linked to cancer  TYPE C PERSONALITY: Denial and suppression of emotions, especially anger. “Pathological niceness” over-patience harmonizing behavior exaggerated social desirability over-compliance high rationality rigid control of emotional expression (anti-emotionality)

When these fail to maintain harmony  feelings of depression, helplessness and hopelessness. If combined with other factors  CANCER

AFTER There are psychological reactions to: -Diagnosis: initial denial, anxiety, anger, mild depression; maladaptive: persitenece of denial, leading to refusal of further medical involvement, clinical depression, fatalistic beliefs, etc. -Treatment: anticipatory anxiety, fears about treatment; maladaptive: exaggerated pessimism, passivity leading to noncompliance with health- protective behaviors, etc.

RESEARCH Research has proven that psychotherapy and support groups: Improve quality of life of cancer patients (Fawzy, Linn) Can potentially expand the patient’s life (Dr. David Spiegel) An important effect responsible for these outcomes: Enhancement of the Immune System.

Type of INTERVENTION: Building bonds of support between patients. Coping strategies for stress and pain management. Problem solving training (search information about their disease, second opinions, etc) Helping people to express emotions. Improving relationships with families and doctors.

CONCLUSION Cancer is a multi-factorial disease. For this reason, its treatment should take into consideration all factors, and not just the physical one. Research is proving that a more holistic approach to cancer is more effective than the medical approach alone.