Mind does matter
For all patients diagnosed with cancer—breast or otherwise—their mental and emotional state must be taken into account in their overall treatment plan.
If you have been diagnosed with advanced or even terminal cancer, it should come as no surprise that you are probably also dealing with depression and anxiety. It's estimated that 50 percent or more of folks with this diagnosis get the double-whammy of psychiatric issues to contend with as well.
And you need someone to listen to you. It may sound simple enough, but it's evidently not happening enough. A new study is recommending that the listener should be either your physician or oncologist. Researchers are calling on these doctors to screen their patients for signs of psychiatric disorders and get these patients referred out for the help they need. Patients would greatly benefit from finding out about local support groups and receiving treatment from a mental health professional.
The statistics bear out how prevalent these problems are. More than 34 percent of patients with advanced cancer and 20 percent with terminal cancer also suffer from an emotional adjustment disorder or some form of depression. One out of 10 advanced cancer patients has an anxiety disorder, and the rate is 14 percent for those who have received a terminal diagnosis.
Sadly, the emotional and psychological impact of a cancer diagnosis, with all of the fear and uncertainty that brings, has been given short shrift.
As a medical professional, I find that embarrassing, when so many studies—and anecdotal stories—have shown what an uplifted, positive mental attitude can do for a patient. You see, we know both from modern science and traditional healing methods, that the thoughts we think and the emotions we feel have a direct effect on our physical bodies. There are actually internal physical changes we can measure.
And who doesn't warm at the story of the man who "beat cancer" by rising out of bed every day, singing at the top of his lungs and punching his hands into the air? These stories do exist, and underscore the relevance that mental health treatment does play in the overall quality of life for these patients.
