Women's posttraumatic stress responses to maternal breast cancer.
Levels of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and their relationships to demographic and psychosocial variables and maternal medical history were examined among 31 women with maternal histories of breast cancer. The results indicate that 19.4% of these women were likely to merit a PTSD diagnosis related to maternal breast cancer, particularly those who reported greater negative affect. In addition, PTSD symptom severity was positively associated with the mother's cancer stage at diagnosis and was inversely associated with participant age. These results suggest that maternal breast cancer is an emotionally traumatic event for many women and point to the potential influence of psychological factors and stressor characteristics on daughters' PTSD responses.
Mosher
Catherine E
CE
Department of Psychology, University at Albany-State University of New York, Social Sciences 369, Albany, NY 12222, USA. cn7347@albany.edu
Danoff-Burg
Sharon
S
Brunker
Beverly
B
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D000339:Affect; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy; D003717:Denial, Psychological; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009518:New York / Q000453:epidemiology; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009820:Ohio / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires