A 30-year perspective on psychosocial issues in lung cancer: how lung cancer "Came out of the Closet".
Psychological responses to lung cancer have changed over the past 30 years as perceptions of the disease have changed. Previously seen as a fatal diagnosis, it is now regarded as a cancer whose treatment is increasingly effective as the science of the disease advances. The stigma of smoking is diminishing as more is learned about genetic factors and as more nonsmokers are diagnosed. Support groups are now widely available. The increasing social support and greater knowledge of lung cancer provide a more supportive environment in which patients cope with lung cancer today compared with 30 years ago.
Clinical Psychology, Health Emphasis Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, USA. taliarweiss@gmail.com
Talia
T
Weiss
Mark
M
Weinberger
Arielle M
AM
Schwerd
Jimmie
J
Holland
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000329:Advertising; D001290:Attitude; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012657:Self-Help Groups; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000523:psychology; D012944:Social Support; D013240:Stereotyping; D014925:Wit and Humor as Topic