Download CANCER: PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS

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 healthprotective 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.