title: Relevance of psychosocial factors to quality of life in oral cancer and oral lichen planus: a prospective comparative study.
abstract: We can improve our understanding of how patients cope with oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) by making a comparison with their processes of coping and those used in other conditions. We have therefore compared quality of life (QoL), severity of symptoms, coping strategies, and factors that influence coping between patients with oral SCC and those with oral lichen planus. We asked 104 patients with oral SCC and 51 with oral lichen planus to complete questionnaires about their coping strategies, social support, locus of control, spirituality, QoL, and severity of symptoms. The outcome was that patients with oral SCC were far more likely to resort to coping strategies such as depressive coping, distraction, and self-motivation. The groups also differed regarding QoL and severity of symptoms. Patients with oral SCC had a poorer QoL and higher depression scores, whereas patients with oral lichen planus had better scores in the social support and spirituality categories. Patients with oral SCC generally had more distress than those with oral lichen planus. Not only did the former resort to depressive coping strategies, but they also had poorer QoL and higher values for depression. For the patients with oral lichen planus, social support and spirituality were protective, whereas they were associated with distress by patients with oral SCC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Personality Psychology and Psychological Assessment, Helmut-Schmidt-University/University of the German Federal Armed Forces Hamburg, Holstenhofweg 85, 22043 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Madiha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rana
authors.affiliation: Department of Maxillofacial Surgery, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, St James's Institute of Oncology, UK.
authors.forename: Anastasios
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kanatas
authors.affiliation: Department of Personality Psychology and Psychological Assessment, Helmut-Schmidt-University/University of the German Federal Armed Forces Hamburg, Holstenhofweg 85, 22043 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Philipp Y
authors.initials: PY
authors.lastname: Herzberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Craniomaxillofacial Surgery, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, 30625 Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: Nils-Claudius
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Gellrich
authors.affiliation: Department of Craniomaxillofacial Surgery, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg-Str. 1, 30625 Hannover, Germany. Electronic address: rana.majeed@mh-hannover.de.
authors.forename: Majeed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rana
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D001288:Attention; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D017676:Lichen Planus, Oral / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D012944:Social Support; D029181:Spirituality; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Assessment of symptoms; Coping behaviour; Oral cancer; Oral lichen planus; Quality of life