In Spain, there are 1,500,000 cancer cases according to the Spanish Association Against Cancer (Aecc). Given that the diagnosis and treatment of cancer have a great impact on the lives of those affected.
What is Psycho-oncology?
Psycho-oncology aims to improve the quality of life of cancer patients and their families, and to prevent possible biopsychosocial complications. It is important to remember that one in four patients suffers from an affective disorder due to the fear, anxiety, and uncertainty caused by the disease, according to data provided by the Institut Català d’Oncología.
According to Núria Gondón, psycho-oncologist and coordinator of the Postgraduate Program in Psycho-oncology at ISEP, psycho-oncological assistance is based on offering psychological care to the oncology patient and their family to identify the possible anxieties and concerns that the new situation entails.
Functions of Psycho-oncology
The psycho-oncologist’s intervention focuses, on the one hand, on alleviating the emotional impact triggered by a cancer diagnosis. On the other hand, it must facilitate the patient’s adaptation to the disease so that they can be an active part of coping with the situation generated by the illness. Another essential function of this professional is to mitigate the side effects of biomedical treatments, for example: conditioning to vomiting due to chemotherapy, adaptation to a new image after a mastectomy, etc. In short, the psycho-oncologist aims for the patient and their family to learn to live with the disease.
Affective Disorders
25% of patients suffer from affective disorders.
Gondón assures that “it is of great help for the patient and their family to be able to count on psychological support throughout the neoplastic process in advance and, according to their needs, receive more or less help.” Information and knowledge of the emotional phases that occur throughout the disease, for both the patient and their family, can prevent greater states of anxiety, help better organize roles within the family unit, and, consequently, promote a higher quality of life. Furthermore, the psycho-oncologist highlights the need to give special attention to the children of cancer patients as well as to the siblings of pediatric oncology patients. Due to their young age and the lack of information that adults often give to children, they often experience the disease in a much more traumatic way than it would be, because when a child doesn’t know, they develop their imagination which, sometimes, is more catastrophic than reality. “It is always forgotten to ask about the emotions of the minor,” adds Gondón.
The psycho-oncologist must provide other health professionals with the necessary communication tools to achieve better empathy with the patient. According to Gondón, “communication must be based on the truth bearable for the patient, but without hiding it.”