title: Patient-centered care in cancer treatment programs: the future of integrative oncology through psychoeducation.
abstract: The reciprocal relationship between the mind and body has been a neglected process for improving the psychosocial care of cancer patients. Emotions form an important link between the mind and body. They play a fundamental role in the cognitive functions of decision-making and symptom control. Recognizing this relationship is important for integrative oncology. We define psychoeducation as the teaching of self-evaluation and self-regulation of the mind-body process. A gap exists between research evidence and implementation into clinical practice. The patients' search for self-empowerment through the pursuit of complementary therapies may be a surrogate for inadequate psychoeducation. Integrative oncology programs should implement psychoeducation that helps patients to improve both emotional and cognitive intelligence, enabling them to better negotiate cancer treatment systems.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Education, Brock University, St Catharines, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Christina M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Garchinski
authors.forename: Ann-Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: DiBiase
authors.forename: Raimond K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Stephen M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Sagar
mesh_terms: D003657:Decision Making; D004644:Emotions; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology*; D018802:Patient-Centered Care
keywords: cancer; counseling; decision-making; education; emotions; integrative; mind–body; oncology; patient-centered; psychoeducation; psychotherapy