| Preoperative Uncertainty, Meaning of Life, and Anxiety in Cancer Patients. |
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Kyungmi Youn, Jongeun Lee |
1Nurse, Chungbuk National University Hospital, Cheongju, Korea.
2Associate Professor, Department of Nursing Science, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Korea. agnes38@chungbuk.ac.kr |
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| Abstract |
PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships among uncertainty, meaning of life, and anxiety in preoperative cancer patients. METHODS: Study participants were 90 adult patients with thyroid, breast, gastric, or colorectal cancer who were admitted to the general surgery ward and daily operation center in a university-affiliated hospital. Data were collected using Mishel's Uncertainty in Illness Scale, Meaning in Life Questionnaire, and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Data were analyzed using t-tests, one-way ANOVAs, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and a multivariate linear regression analysis (backward stepwise) with SPSS version 24. RESULTS: Anxiety showed a positive correlation with uncertainty in illness (r=.59, p < .001) and a negative correlation with meaning of life (r=−.49, p < .001), and uncertainty had a negative correlation with meaning of life (r=−53, p < .001). The regression model explained 40.0% variance of preoperative cancer patients' anxiety (F=20.55, p < .001). Significant factors were uncertainty (β=.43, p < .001), meaning of life (β=−.20, p < .001), and low income level (β=.18, p < .001). CONCLUSION: Our study's findings show that cancer patients' anxiety can be reduced within 24 hours before surgery through psychological nursing interventions aimed at reducing uncertainty and improving the meaning of life. |
| Key Words:
Neoplasms; Preoperative period; Uncertainty; Life; Anxiety |
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