Background: Although illness perception (IP) is a widely recognised factor in the psychosocial adjustment to cancer, little is known about the impact of individual dimensions of IP. This study aims to analyse the relationship between individual dimensions of IP and quality of life (QOL) in childhood cancer survivors. Methods: The sample consisted of 163 long-term survivors aged 11 to 25 who were administered the Brief Illness Perceptions Questionnaire and the Minneapolis–Manchester Quality of Life Scale. Results: In the correlational analysis, all dimensions of IP were associated with individual dimensions of QOL, except for understanding and treatment control. The results of the hierarchical regression analysis controlling for demographic and medical factors showed that IP had predicted individual dimensions of QOL above and beyond these factors, with emotional response, concern, consequences and understanding being the most predictive dimensions. Several age-specific relationships between IP and QOL were also identified. Conclusions: Illness perceptions significantly contribute to explaining QOL of childhood cancer survivors above and beyond demographic and medical factors. These results may contribute to more effective targeting of psychosocial interventions promoting QOL of survivors.
背景:尽管疾病感知(IP)是癌症心理社会适应中一个被广泛认可的因素,但关于IP各维度的影响却知之甚少。本研究旨在分析儿童癌症幸存者中IP各维度与生活质量(QOL)之间的关系。方法:样本包括163名年龄在11至25岁之间的长期幸存者,他们接受了简明疾病感知问卷和明尼阿波利斯-曼彻斯特生活质量量表的评估。结果:在相关性分析中,除理解和治疗控制外,IP的所有维度均与QOL的各个维度相关。在控制人口统计学和医学因素的分层回归分析结果显示,IP对QOL各维度的预测能力超出了这些因素,其中情绪反应、担忧、后果和理解是最具预测性的维度。研究还发现了IP与QOL之间一些特定年龄的关系。结论:疾病感知在解释儿童癌症幸存者的生活质量方面具有显著贡献,其作用超出了人口统计学和医学因素。这些结果可能有助于更有针对性地进行心理社会干预,以提升幸存者的生活质量。
Illness Perceptions and Quality of Life in Childhood Cancer Survivors