Spiritual Wellbeing and Life Attitude of Breast Cancer Patients

So, Heeyoung; Min, Hyo Suk

Abstract

PURPOSE: This research was conducted to explore the relationship between spiritual well being and life attitude among breast cancer patients who were operated, and to increase understanding for wholistic nursing care. METHOD: With spiritual well being from quality of life questionnaire in breast cancer survivors (QOL-BR 23) of Ferrell et al (1998) and Life attitude profile (LAP) of Recker & Peacock (1981), the data were collected by research assistant in a sample of 56 women with stage 1-stage 3 breast cancer at surgery OPD after follow-up care. RESULT: Mean spiritual wellbeing score of subject was 5.83 (0-10) and life attitude was 4.96 (1-7). There were significant differences in life attitude according to monthly income (F=3.22, p=.03), and in spiritual wellbeing according to monthly income (F=4.16, p=.01) and religion (t=-3.67, p=.001) among demographic characteristics. There was significant difference in spiritual wellbeing according to the period passed after operation (F=2.89, p=.04) among disease characteristics. From life attitude domain, the mean score of "will to meaning" was the highest (5.30) and "existential vacuum" was the lowest (4.58). There was a significant relationship between spiritual wellbeing and "will to meaning" subscale of life attitude (r=.521, p=.000). The correlation coefficient showed r=.513 between spiritual well being and life attitude.
CONCLUSION
Nurses could promote positive life attitude for breast cancer patients by improving spiritual well being with the encouragement of having religion expecially for long term breast cancer survivors in the process of their rehabilitation.