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Spirituality and religion in cancer

introduction

Measurement of religion, religiousness, and spirituality for the

purposes of health research has been an evolving enterprise.Beginning with Durkheims Suicide (1897/1951), andcontinuing through the 1960s and 1970s, epidemiological studiesfocused on mortality or health differences among religiousaffiliations.

A second wave of studies beginning in 1979 [1] took anentirely different approach.

Religiousness was measured with a single item asking aboutattendance at services or membership in a congregation; theindividuals specific religious affiliation, the basis for allthe previous research, was now usually absent [2]. Also,

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spirituality is an essential component of the care of patientswith cancer and those that are dying.

spirituality and cancer

Cancer patients do not expect spiritual solutions from oncologyteam members, but they wish to feel comfortable enough toraise spiritual issues and not be met with fear, judgmental

attitudes, or dismissive comments. Spiritual needs may not beexplicit in all illness phases, yet spirituality is not only confinedto the areas of palliative or end-of-life care [3]. Lopez et al.showed that the level of overall spiritual well-being was high, aswere the levels of self-efficacy and life scheme (meaningfulness),as measured with two subscales [4].

religion and cancer

The relationship between religion and health has been studiedin several countries and the results were positive. An associationbetween religious affiliation, behavior, and lifestyle indicatingthat, even in relatively secular societies, it is a populationattribute that should be given more consideration in studies of

population health [5]. Understanding of a patients religiousstatus and information relating to the spiritual domain can beuseful to clinicians working in chronic illness, surgery of cancer,and terminal care, where it can effect patient morale [6].

S. R. Mousavi* & M. E. Akdari

Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Cancer Center, Tehran, Iran

(*E-mail: Seyed29@yahoo.com)

references

1. Berkman LF, Syme SL. Social networks, host resistance and mortality: A nine-year

follow-up of Alameda County residents. Am J Epidemiol 1979; 109: 186204.

2. Idler E. Religious observance and health: theory and research. In Warner Schaie

KW, Krause N, Booth A (eds): Religious Influences on Health and Well-Being of theElderly, New York: Springer 2004; 2043.

3. Surbone A, Baider L. The spiritual dimension of cancer care. Crit Rev Oncol

Hematol 2009.

4. Lopez AJ, McAcuffrey R, Quinn Griffin MT, Fitzpatrick JJ. Spiritual well-being and

practices among women with gynecologic cancer. Oncol Nurs Forum 2009; 36(3):

300305.

5. ORailly D, Rosato M. Religious affiliation and mortality in Northern Ireland: beyond

Catholic and Protestant. Soc Sci Med 2008; 66(7): 16371645.

6. OConnell KA, Skevington SM. To measure or not to measure? Reviewing the

assessment of spirituality and religion in health-related quality of life. Chronic Illn

2007; 3(1): 7787.

doi:10.1093/annonc/mdp604Published online 20 January 2010

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