Psycho-oncology and its Importance in the Modern Cancer Treatment.
Psychological distress is widely seen yet less spoken in the oncology settings of the past. This article will provide information which will help cancer patients to embrace the new normal, to bring better quality of life, and most importantly in maximizing the treatment outcomes.
There is nothing pleasant about having psychological stress at any level in one’s life, and the stress caused by cancer is no exception. Moreover, cancer is known to bring tremendous emotional burden not only to the patients but also to their loved ones. Considering the gravity of the situation, why wouldn’t psychology have a place in the oncology settings?
The initial reaction to the diagnosis of cancer is different from person to person. While many patients give intense emotional reactions, only a very few seem to adapt well to the new unexpected situation in their lives. Such intense initial reactions are mostly due to people’s false association of cancer as a death sentence. In order to withhold their psychological stability, majority of patients often resort to defence mechanisms such as projection (attributing one’s own unacceptable thoughts, and feelings to another person in order to find desirable answers), suppression (the act of deliberately trying to bury their actual thoughts and feelings), regression (a shift towards a lower or less perfect state such as behaving like a child), and denial (a state of complete refusal to accept the reality and continue to behave as if it did not exist).
Psychological Distress and its Symptoms:
When people confront with high level of uncertainties they go through different phases of grief such as denial, anger, bargaining, depression and finally acceptance. This may lead to tremendous emotional burden and psychological distress. According to National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), the psychological distress defined as
“a multifactorial unpleasant emotional experience of a psychological (cognitive, behavioral, emotional) social, and/or spiritual nature that may interfere with the ability to cope effectively with cancer, its physical symptoms, and its treatment.”
The distress can impact major areas of one’s personal, professional, psychological, social and spiritual life. Below listed are the some of the symptoms of the distress.
- Sadness, fear, and helplessness
- Anger and feeling out of control
- Recurrent negative automatic thoughts about cancer
- Irrational beliefs about self, others, and the world. Questioning your faith, your purpose, the meaning of life and frequent thoughts about illness and death
- Trouble in getting sleep and issues with eating habits
- Finding hard in decision making
- Unable to cope up with treatment side-effects such as pain, nausea, and fatigue.
Considering there is nothing abnormal in experiencing psychological distress at some point in the cancer journey, it is better to be prepared to face it International Psycho-oncology Society (IPOS) has named distress as the sixth vital sign. Vital are signs that show the condition of someone’s health, such as body temperature, the rate of breathing, pulse, blood pressure, and pain. The distress level is measured using a screening tool called ‘Distress Thermometer’ where patients and caregivers can choose a relevant number from the diagram. ‘Zero’ represents no psychological distress and ‘Ten’ would mean severe distress. This may sound simple, but studies have proved to speed up the initial screening process among cancer patients using this simple technique.
In 45% to 60% cancer cases around the world, the patients are found to be experiencing psychological distress. Cancer can take a lot out of the patient’s and the caregiver’s emotional wellbeing, hence seeking the right professional support will help them to build better Quality of life. On the other hand, ignoring this could adversely affect the overall treatment success rate.
Ways to Manage the Psychological Distress:
With the help of a professionally trained person, the caregivers can help the patient to manage the distress level in various simple ways. The professional help would not only help their confidence level but also to identify some of the symptoms early on and suggest solutions early on. Following are some of the commonly used effective practices to manage distress levels in cancer patients.
- Talking with the loved ones can help to vent out the inner feelings.
- Engaging the patient in diversional therapies based on their likes and dislikes can help to keep them occupied and stay away from negative thoughts
- Writing a journal or jot down the recurrent thoughts can also help them engaged.
- Doing relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, guided imagery, and visualization techniques
- Exercise and being physically active is also very essential to bring down distress
Most of the people are neither prepared or trained to deal with the overnight psychological and emotional burden that comes with the cancer diagnosis, and it only increases with time if not dealt with carefully. It is for the same reason why the modern cancer treatment facilities and professionals are now moving towards a more holistic approach. As a result, many good hospitals are now equipped with dedicated Psycho-oncology departments and professionally trained psychologists to help patients and caregivers in dealing with the psychological and emotional aspects of cancer. It is very positive to see how the psychological aspects of cancer are finally getting the right importance in the modern oncology settings.
Times are changing, for good! :)
I’d love to hear your feedback on this post, as well as your experience and other inspiring stories while dealing with cancer care. (If you are a cancer care professional and looking for a chance to connect, share and discuss your passion with other like minded people, come join us on Psycho-oncology Professional Network)
Connect with me on LinkedIn.
