PSC 126 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Cancer, Oncology, Metastasis
● What are the psychological factors associated with
○ onset/ initiation of cancer
○ course/ prognosis of cancer
○ Survival / recovery from cancer
● Psycho - oncology
● Cancer - disease of the cells characterized by excessively rapid cell growth (malignant
neoplasm)
● Metastasis - separation & spreading of cancer cells to other parts of the body
○ 1. Cancer cells invade surrounding tissues & vessels
○ 2. Cancer cells are transported by the circulatory system to distant sites
○ 3. Cancer cells reinvade & grow at new location
● Cancer leads to death in 2 ways
○ Direct route - spreads to vital organ
○ Indirect route - disease weakens the victim & both disease / treatment impairs
ability to fight infection
● Prognosis - depends on how early it is detected & its location
● Diagnosis - biopsy, endoscopy, blood test, X - rays & scans
● Treatment - surgery, radiation, chemotherapy
● Research designs
○ 1. Retrospective - compare cases w/ controls
■ Weak method
○ 2. Semi - prospective → before diagnosis is in
■ Somewhat better method
○ 3. True prospective - T1 (before cancer), T2 (after cancer)
■ better
○ 4. Intervention - alter or modify the risk factor
■ Best method
● The type C pattern
○ Poor coping - helplessness & hopelessness
○ Emotional avoidance - non-expressive; detached
○ Primarily uses denial & avoidant coping
○ Sense of passivity & fatalism
● Research on Type C and cancer
○ Greer - coping styles & breast cancer (1979)
■ Fighting spirit (80% survival)
■ Denial (70%)
■ Stoic acceptance (37%)
■ helpless/ hopeless (20%)
○ Replication
■ 578 women w/ early stage breast cancer followed over a 5 year
prospective study
■ 133 had died within 5 years
■ hopelessness/ helplessness had a negative effect on survival
Document Summary
What are the psychological factors associated with. Cancer - disease of the cells characterized by excessively rapid cell growth (malignant neoplasm) Metastasis - separation & spreading of cancer cells to other parts of the body. Cancer cells are transported by the circulatory system to distant sites. Cancer cells reinvade & grow at new location. Cancer leads to death in 2 ways. Direct route - spreads to vital organ. Indirect route - disease weakens the victim & both disease / treatment impairs ability to fight infection. Prognosis - depends on how early it is detected & its location. Diagnosis - biopsy, endoscopy, blood test, x - rays & scans. Semi - prospective before diagnosis is in. True prospective - t1 (before cancer), t2 (after cancer) Intervention - alter or modify the risk factor. Greer - coping styles & breast cancer (1979) 578 women w/ early stage breast cancer followed over a 5 year prospective study.
