Department of Psychiatry, Bronovo Hospital, Bronovolaan 5, 2597 AX The Hague, The Netherlands.
Lung Cancer. 2011 Apr;72(1):119-24. doi: 10.1016/j.lungcan.2010.07.007. Epub 2010 Aug 11.
Denial is a well-known phenomenon in clinical oncology practice. Yet whether the impact of denial on patient well-being is beneficial or harmful remains unknown. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the relationship between denial and social and emotional outcomes in a large sample of lung cancer patients over an extended time period. Denial and social and emotional outcomes were measured in 195 newly diagnosed lung cancer patients. Four assessments were conducted over 8 months. The level of denial was measured using the Denial of Cancer Interview. Patient-reported social and emotional outcomes were measured using the EORTC-QLQ-30 and the HADS. Patients with a moderate or increasing level of denial over time reported better social outcomes (role functioning: p = 0.0036, social functioning: p = 0.027) and less anxiety (p = 0.0001) and depression (p = 0.0019) than patients with a low level of denial. The overall quality of life was better among lung cancer patients who displayed either moderate or increasing levels of denial compared with those who displayed low levels of denial (p < 0.0001). A certain level of denial in lung cancer patients can have a protective effect on social and emotional outcomes. Clinicians should take this into account when providing information about the illness and its prognosis.
否认是临床肿瘤学实践中众所周知的现象。然而，否认对患者福祉的影响是有益还是有害仍不得而知。本研究的目的是在较长时间内调查大量肺癌患者中否认与社会和情感结果之间的关系。在 195 名新诊断的肺癌患者中测量了否认和社会情感结果。在 8 个月内进行了四次评估。使用癌症否认访谈来衡量否认的程度。使用 EORTC-QLQ-30 和 HADS 来衡量患者报告的社会和情感结果。随着时间的推移，否认程度中等或增加的患者报告社会结果更好（角色功能：p = 0.0036，社会功能：p = 0.027），焦虑（p = 0.0001）和抑郁（p = 0.0019）较少，而否认程度较低的患者。与否认程度较低的患者相比，表现出中等或增加否认程度的肺癌患者的整体生活质量更好（p <0.0001）。一定程度的否认在肺癌患者的社会和情感结果上可能具有保护作用。临床医生在提供有关疾病及其预后的信息时应考虑到这一点。
