Patient and physician reports of the information provided about illness and treatment: what matters for patients' adaptation to cancer during treatment?

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to examine (a) whether illness representations mediate the relation of the amount of information provided by physicians to patients' adaptation to illness; (b) whether patient-physician agreement on the information provided impacts the aforementioned relationship. The study focused on information that, according to the Common Sense Self-Regulation Model, is essential for adaptation to illness.

METHODS

The sample consisted of 93 patients undergoing chemotherapy and their physicians. Indirect (mediation) effects and conditional (moderated) indirect effects were examined using bootstrapping.

RESULTS

The more illness and treatment-related information was provided by physicians, the more positive illness representations (specifically, illness consequences, emotional representations, and personal control) were reported by patients. In turn, these illness representations were related to better physical functioning and better adjustment to cancer. The degree of the patient-physician agreement on the information provided did not affect this relationship.

CONCLUSIONS

What seems to be more crucial for patients' adaptation to cancer during treatment is the amount of information provided by physicians rather than their agreement with patients on the information provided. Also, there is a need to thoroughly examine the pathways through which information provision impacts adaptation to illness.