TY - JOUR
T1 - Spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain in advanced cancer patients
AU - Delgado-Guay, Marvin O.
AU - Hui, David
AU - Parsons, Henrique A.
AU - Govan, Kathy
AU - De La Cruz, Maxine
AU - Thorney, Steven
AU - Bruera, Eduardo
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health grants RO1NR010162-01A1 , RO1CA122292-01 , and RO1CA124481-01 (E. B.), and the Clinician Investigator Program, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (D. H.).
PY - 2011/6
Y1 - 2011/6
N2 - Context: Spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain may affect advanced cancer patients' symptom expression, coping strategies, and quality of life. Objectives: To examine the prevalence and intensity of spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain, and how spiritual pain was associated with symptom expression, coping, and spiritual quality of life. Methods: We interviewed 100 advanced cancer patients at the M.D. Anderson palliative care outpatient clinic in Houston, TX. Self-rated spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain were assessed using numeric rating scales (0 = lowest, 10 = highest). Patients also completed validated questionnaires assessing symptoms (Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale [ESAS] and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), coping (Brief COPE and Brief R-COPE), the value attributed by the patient to spirituality/religiosity in coping with cancer (Systems of Belief Inventory-15R), and spiritual quality of life (Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being-Expanded [FACIT-Sp-Ex]). Results: The median age was 53 years (range 21-85) and 88% were Christians. Almost all patients considered themselves spiritual (98%) and religious (98%), with a median intensity of 9 (interquartile range 7-10) of 10 and 9 (range 5-10) of 10, respectively. Spiritual pain was reported in 40 (44%) of 91 patients, with a median score of 3 (1-6) among those with spiritual pain. Spiritual pain was significantly associated with lower self-perceived religiosity (7 vs. 10, P = 0.002) and spiritual quality of life (FACIT-Sp-Ex 68 vs. 81, P = 0.001). Patients with spiritual pain reported that it contributed adversely to their physical/emotional symptoms (P < 0.001). There was a trend toward increased depression, anxiety, anorexia, and drowsiness, as measured by the ESAS, among patients with spiritual pain (P < 0.05), although this was not significant after Bonferroni correction. Conclusion: A vast majority of advanced cancer patients receiving palliative care considered themselves spiritual and religious. Spiritual pain was common and was associated with lower self-perceived religiosity and spiritual quality of life.
AB - Context: Spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain may affect advanced cancer patients' symptom expression, coping strategies, and quality of life. Objectives: To examine the prevalence and intensity of spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain, and how spiritual pain was associated with symptom expression, coping, and spiritual quality of life. Methods: We interviewed 100 advanced cancer patients at the M.D. Anderson palliative care outpatient clinic in Houston, TX. Self-rated spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain were assessed using numeric rating scales (0 = lowest, 10 = highest). Patients also completed validated questionnaires assessing symptoms (Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale [ESAS] and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), coping (Brief COPE and Brief R-COPE), the value attributed by the patient to spirituality/religiosity in coping with cancer (Systems of Belief Inventory-15R), and spiritual quality of life (Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being-Expanded [FACIT-Sp-Ex]). Results: The median age was 53 years (range 21-85) and 88% were Christians. Almost all patients considered themselves spiritual (98%) and religious (98%), with a median intensity of 9 (interquartile range 7-10) of 10 and 9 (range 5-10) of 10, respectively. Spiritual pain was reported in 40 (44%) of 91 patients, with a median score of 3 (1-6) among those with spiritual pain. Spiritual pain was significantly associated with lower self-perceived religiosity (7 vs. 10, P = 0.002) and spiritual quality of life (FACIT-Sp-Ex 68 vs. 81, P = 0.001). Patients with spiritual pain reported that it contributed adversely to their physical/emotional symptoms (P < 0.001). There was a trend toward increased depression, anxiety, anorexia, and drowsiness, as measured by the ESAS, among patients with spiritual pain (P < 0.05), although this was not significant after Bonferroni correction. Conclusion: A vast majority of advanced cancer patients receiving palliative care considered themselves spiritual and religious. Spiritual pain was common and was associated with lower self-perceived religiosity and spiritual quality of life.
KW - Spirituality
KW - cancer
KW - coping
KW - palliative care
KW - quality of life
KW - religiosity
KW - spiritual pain
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2010.09.017
DO - 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2010.09.017
M3 - Article
C2 - 21402459
AN - SCOPUS:79957653841
SN - 0885-3924
VL - 41
SP - 986
EP - 994
JO - Journal of pain and symptom management
JF - Journal of pain and symptom management
IS - 6
ER -