Perceived quality of life and coping for Swedish women with breast cancer who choose complementary medicine
| Document type: | Journal Articles |
|---|---|
| Article type: | Original article |
| Peer reviewed: | Yes |
| Author(s): | Marianne Carlsson, Maria Arman, Marie Backman, Elisabeth Hamrin |
| Title: | Perceived quality of life and coping for Swedish women with breast cancer who choose complementary medicine |
| Journal: | CANCER NURSING |
| Year: | 2001 |
| Pagination: | 395-401 |
| ISSN: | 0162-220X |
| Publisher: | LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS |
| City: | PHILADELPHIA |
| ISI number: | 000171410300008 |
| Organization: | Blekinge Institute of Technology |
| Department: | School of Health Science (Sektionen för hälsa) School of Health Science S-371 79 Karlskrona +46 455 38 50 00 http://www.bth.se/hal/ |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | The aim of the present study, which is part of a major clinical controlled study of the life situation of women with breast cancer, was to compare two groups of women concerning perceived quality of life and coping. The women were treated in two different cancer treatment programs: complementary treatment, which included anthroposophic therapy, and conventional cancer treatment. A total of 120 women were included, 60 women treated with anthroposophic medicine, and 60 individually matched women treated with conventional medicine only. Quality of life was measured by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer, Quality of Life Questionnaire, Core 30, and the Life Satisfaction Questionnaire. Coping was measured by the Mental Adjustment to Cancer scale. The results showed that the women who chose anthroposophic therapy perceived their quality of life to be lower on admission to the hospital and showed more anxious preoccupation than the women in conventional medicine. It can be concluded that, due to the careful matching procedure, the women in the two groups are comparable in a medical sense but not from the perspective of quality of life and coping. |
| Subject: | Public Health\General |
| Keywords: | breast cancer, coping, complementary therapy, quality of life |
