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Supportive Care in Cancer

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01-12-2008 | Original Article

Does the occurrence of adverse life events in patients with breast cancer lead to a change in illness behaviour?

Authors: Siegfried Geyer, Dorothee Noeres, Mariya Mollova, Heike Sassmann, Alexandra Prochnow, Mechthild Neises

Published in: Supportive Care in Cancer | Issue 12/2008

Abstract

Goals of work

It was examined whether life-changing events may lead to changes of illness behaviour in women prior to breast cancer diagnosis. We considered the delay in three different aspects: date of breast self-examination, routine visits at the doctor, and finally changes in the length of time intervals between the detection of suspicious breast symptoms and the subsequent verification of diagnoses.

Materials and methods

The data of 240 patients (age <70 years) with a first manifestation of breast cancer were used for analysis. Life events were assessed by means of a semi-structured interview as proposed by Brown and Harris and classified according to a system proposed by Brugha et al., the List of Threatening Experiences (LTE). All analyses were performed by means of Cox’s proportional hazard regression.

Main results

Women with stressful events went to the doctor earlier than those without events. The date of breast self-examination remained unchanged after the occurrence of events. Women who had discovered suspicious breast symptoms delayed the subsequent visit at the doctor if they had experienced two serious events within this period. The occurrence of life events may have effects on illness behaviour, but into different directions.

Conclusion

In the majority of cases, event-related delays were shorter than those reported to aggravate the prognosis of breast cancer.

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Title: Does the occurrence of adverse life events in patients with breast cancer lead to a change in illness behaviour?
Authors: Siegfried Geyer
Dorothee Noeres
Mariya Mollova
Heike Sassmann
Alexandra Prochnow
Mechthild Neises
Publication date: 01-12-2008
Publisher: Springer-Verlag
Published in: Supportive Care in Cancer / Issue 12/2008
Print ISSN: 0941-4355
Electronic ISSN: 1433-7339
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-008-0492-3

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