Burial or cremation? Factors associated with preferences among patients with cancer in Brazil: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: People living with life-limiting illnesses and their family caregivers consistently em-phasize the importance of preparing for imminent death, with planned funerals being a common aspect of this preparation. Few studies have described the funeral rituals or post-mortem preferences of patients with cancer. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the percentage of patients with cancer who wish to be cremated and to identify the factors associated with this preference.DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional study conducted at Barretos Cancer Hospital. METHODS: A total of 220 patients with cancer completed a Sociodemographic and Clinical Question-naire, the Duke University Religiosity Index, and burial or cremation preferences. Binary Logistic Regression was performed to identify independent variables associated with cremation.RESULTS: Of the 220 patients, 25.0% preferred cremation and 71.4% preferred burial. Talks about death with family or close friends in their daily life (odds ratio, OR = 2.89; P = 0.021), patients that answered other (unsure, tends not be true and not true) for religious beliefs are what really lie behind my whole approach to life (OR = 20.34; P = 0.005), and education 9 to 11 years (OR = 3.15; P = 0.019) or >= 12 years (OR = 3.18; P = 0.024) were associated with cremation preference.CONCLUSION: Most patients with Cancer in Brazil prefer burial after death. Discussions about death, re-ligious beliefs and involvement, and educational level seem to influence the preference for cremation. A deeper understanding of ritual funeral preferences and their associated factors may guide policies, ser-vices, and health teams in promoting the quality of dying and death.

Automated summary

This study aimed to evaluate the percentage of cancer patients who prefer cremation and identify the factors associated with this preference. The results showed that the majority of cancer patients in Brazil prefer burial. However, discussions about death, religious beliefs, and educational level seem to influence the preference for cremation.