title: Active coping mediates the association between religion/spirituality and quality of life in ovarian cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study investigated the role of religion/spirituality (R/S) and coping in quality of life (QOL) in 129 women immediately prior to a course of adjuvant chemotherapy for ovarian cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants completed the COPE, the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Ovarian (FACT-O), and the Systems of Belief Inventory-15R (SBI-15R). Women averaged 58.9 years of age (SD = 11.5) and were primarily Caucasian (86%), married (74%), and had received at least some college education (67%). Eighty-five percent of the participants had stage III or IV ovarian cancer at study entry.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Correlational analyses revealed that R/S was associated with active coping (r = 0.23, P = 0.022), overall QOL (r = 0.25, P = 0.012), emotional and functional well-being (r = 0.24, P = 0.014 and r = 0.28, P = 0.004), and fewer ovarian cancer-specific concerns (r = 0.27, P = 0.006). In addition, active coping was related to overall QOL (r = 0.22, P = 0.029) and social and functional well-being (r = 0.20, P = 0.042 and r = 0.33, P = 0.001). Tests of mediation between these variables suggested that the positive associations between R/S and functional well-being and R/S and overall QOL were mediated through the use of active coping.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Future studies are needed to better understand the complex relationships between R/S, coping, and QOL throughout the ovarian cancer treatment experience.
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center-Unit 1330, PO Box 310439, Houston, TX 77230-1439, USA. alcanada@manderson.org
authors.forename: Andrea L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Canada
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: Janet S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: de Moor
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Basen-Engquist
authors.forename: Lois M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Ramondetta
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cohen
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology*; D011788:Quality of Life; D029181:Spirituality; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome