Active coping mediates the association between religion/spirituality and quality of life in ovarian cancer.
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.
Canada
Andrea L
AL
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
Parker
Patricia A
PA
de Moor
Janet S
JS
Basen-Engquist
Karen
K
Ramondetta
Lois M
LM
Cohen
Lorenzo
L
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