Abstract
Background
The experience of the diagnosis of prostate cancer is distressing for both men and their partners. The present study describes the prevalence of psychological distress in men with prostate cancer and their partners, and the predictors of adjustment outcomes.
Methods/design
A cross-sectional survey of 189 prostate cancer patients who were scheduled for or had undergone surgery for localised prostate cancer and their partners assessed socio-demographic variables, masculine self-esteem and social intimacy, psychological adjustment and quality of life.
Results
Overall, patients and partners reported low distress; however, female partners were more anxious with 36 % reporting mild to severe anxiety. For men, masculine self-esteem and time since diagnosis were most strongly related to mental health status; urinary bother most influenced physical quality of life. For female partners, the man’s psychological distress and his sexual bother were most strongly related to her mental health status; higher social intimacy was most strongly associated with physical quality of life.
Conclusion
The correlates of distress after the diagnosis of prostate cancer differ between patients and female partners. For men, masculine self-esteem may be most crucial, whereas for women, her partner’s level of distress may matter most. Research to better understand these interactions is needed.
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Acknowledgments
This project was funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (ID496001) and Andrology Australia. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand, of Mr Bill McHugh and Mr Spence Broughton as consumer advisors in the undertaking of this research and of Miss Leah Zajdlewicz for her assistance with the analysis.
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There are no conflicts of interest for any of the authors.
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Chambers, S.K., Schover, L., Nielsen, L. et al. Couple distress after localised prostate cancer. Support Care Cancer 21, 2967–2976 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-013-1868-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-013-1868-6