Tuman Malwina, Roberts Kailey E, Corner Geoffrey, Beard Courtney, Fadalla Carol, Coats Taylor, Slivjak Elizabeth, Schofield Elizabeth, Lichtenthal Wendy G
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, United States.
Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University, Bronx, NY, United States.
Front Psychol. 2021 Nov 18;12:682174. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.682174. eCollection 2021.
Fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) is a prevalent and persistent challenge that many cancer survivors endure. While the role of interpretation bias, a tendency to perceive ambiguous situations as threatening, has been established in the onset and maintenance of FCR, few studies have examined cancer-related interpretation bias specifically. Grounded in the cognitive formulation of FCR, the current study aimed to fill this gap by investigating the relationship between cancer-related interpretation bias, FCR, and somatic symptoms, and examining whether bias mediates the relationship between somatic symptoms and FCR. This study used baseline data from a randomized controlled trial of a cognitive bias modification intervention. Breast cancer survivors ( = 110) provided demographic and medical background information as well as self-report measures of FCR and severity of somatic symptoms. A computer-based assessment of interpretation bias was used to measure cancer-related interpretation bias on several bias indices: percentage of cancer-related threat endorsement, and percentage of benign endorsement; mean reaction time (RT) for threat, and mean RT for benign endorsement. Higher threat endorsement was linked to higher Overall Fear and emerged as a mediator of the relationship between overall somatic symptoms and Overall Fear. We also found that older age was related to longer benign endorsement RT. This study contributes understanding of factors related to cancer-related interpretation bias and provides evidence that bias may influence the relationship between somatic symptoms and FCR in cancer survivors.
对癌症复发的恐惧（FCR）是许多癌症幸存者普遍面临且持续存在的挑战。虽然解释偏差（即将模棱两可的情况视为威胁的倾向）在FCR的产生和持续存在中所起的作用已得到证实，但很少有研究专门考察与癌症相关的解释偏差。基于FCR的认知模型，本研究旨在通过调查与癌症相关的解释偏差、FCR和躯体症状之间的关系，并检验偏差是否介导躯体症状与FCR之间的关系来填补这一空白。本研究使用了一项认知偏差修正干预随机对照试验的基线数据。乳腺癌幸存者（n = 110）提供了人口统计学和医学背景信息，以及FCR和躯体症状严重程度的自我报告测量数据。基于计算机的解释偏差评估用于在几个偏差指标上测量与癌症相关的解释偏差：与癌症相关的威胁认可百分比和良性认可百分比；威胁的平均反应时间（RT）和良性认可的平均RT。更高的威胁认可与更高的总体恐惧相关，并成为总体躯体症状与总体恐惧之间关系的中介。我们还发现，年龄较大与更长的良性认可RT相关。本研究有助于理解与癌症相关的解释偏差的相关因素，并提供证据表明偏差可能影响癌症幸存者躯体症状与FCR之间的关系。
