Quality of life, distress and psychological adjustment in patients with colon cancer

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between distress, psychological adjust-ment, and quality of life in patients with colon cancer.Method: This study employed a cross-sectional design and included 104 colon cancer patients treated at AHEPA Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece. The assessment tools used encompassed the Distress Thermometer, MINI-MAC scale, and FACT-C to evaluate distress, psychological adjustment, and quality of life. Statistical analysis, con-ducted in SPSS software, encompassed correlation tests and linear regression to explore the interplay between these variables in colon cancer patients.Results: Correlation tests revealed that patients' quality of life is positively correlated with a fighting spirit (r = 0.719, p < 0.001), cognitive avoidance (r = 0.634, p < 0.001), and fatalism (r = 0.518, p < 0.001), and negatively with helplessness and hopelessness (r =-0.756, p < 0.001), and anxious preoccupation (r =-0.679, p < 0.001). OLS regression findings verified these results partially for a significance level of 5% but indicated no statistically significant effect of cognitive avoidance and fatalism on quality of life, which was further found unaffected by total distress.Conclusions: The intricate links between quality of life, distress, and psychological adjustment in colon cancer patients call for deeper investigation. A personalized approach in psycho-oncology care is essential for comprehensive treatment. These findings highlight the significance of addressing the psychological and emotional needs of colon cancer patients, as observed in the study's results.

Automated summary

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between distress, psychological adjustment, and quality of life in patients with colon cancer. The results showed that quality of life was positively correlated with fighting spirit, cognitive avoidance, and fatalism, and negatively correlated with helplessness and hopelessness, and anxious preoccupation.