Psychological influences on acceptance of postsurgical treatment in cancerpatients

Objective: Many cancer patients fail to complete treatment for reasons that are unclear in previous research which, nevertheless, suggested hypotheses for this study about the characteristics of the patients and their consult ations. Method: 158 adults with breast cancer or other cancers who had been chosen for postsurgical treatment in the Lister Hospital or the Mount Vern on Hospital had completed published questionnaires to assess either (n = 74 ) personal attributes or circumstances viz. locus of health control, health habits, support, affiliative drive, anxiety, depression, or (n = 84) their attitudes to cancer or their consultations, viz. the Mental Attitudes to C ancer Scales, Trust in Physicians, Perceived Empathy, and Satisfaction With Recent and Diagnostic Consultations. Results: 32% then failed to complete treatment. In logistic multiple regression analyses, only diagnosis (P = .0 001), gender (P = .005), and treatment center (P = .0002) predicted this al though the effect of gender was not significant among patients without brea st cancer. Among the patients without breast cancer intended for the Mount Vernon Hospital, a National Cancer Center, fewer completed treatment than t hose did not complete. Conclusion: The breast cancer patients, unlike women with other cancers, and patients referred to the local hospital rather tha n the regional cancer center, were more likely to complete treatment. Thus, uptake of treatment may be favoured by accessibility and familiarity of it s source and by the unique impact in women of breast cancer and the wider p ublic attention given to that illness. Research on patients' expectations, fears, and corresponding experiences of treatment, rather than personal att ributes, should clarify failure to complete cancer treatment especially in patients without breast pathology. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All right s reserved.