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Illness perceptions within 6 months of cancer diagnosis are an independent prospective predictor of health‐related quality of life 15 months post‐diagnosis
Author(s) -
Ashley Laura,
Marti Joachim,
Jones Helen,
Velikova Galina,
Wright Penny
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
psycho‐oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.41
H-Index - 137
eISSN - 1099-1611
pISSN - 1057-9249
DOI - 10.1002/pon.3812
Subject(s) - quality of life (healthcare) , medicine , psychological intervention , clinical psychology , multilevel model , perception , explained variation , psychiatry , psychology , nursing , machine learning , neuroscience , computer science
Objective Studies have found that illness perceptions explain significant variance in health outcomes in numerous diseases. However, most of the research is cross‐sectional and non‐oncological. We examined, for the first time in breast, colorectal and prostate cancer patients, if cognitive and emotional illness perceptions near diagnosis predict future multidimensional health‐related quality of life (HRQoL). Methods UK‐based patients ( N  = 334) completed the illness perception questionnaire‐revised within 6 months post‐diagnosis and the quality of life in adult cancer survivors scale 15 months post‐diagnosis. Sociodemographic and clinical data were obtained from medical records. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted. Results The sociodemographic and clinical factors collectively significantly predicted 8/12 HRQoL domains, although for 5/8 accounted for <10% of the variance. For all 12 HRQoL domains, illness perceptions collectively explained significant substantial additional variance (∆ R 2 range: 5.6–27.9%), and a single illness perception questionnaire‐revised dimension was the best individual predictor of 9/12 HRQoL domains. The consequences dimension independently predicted 7/12 HRQoL domains; patients who believed their cancer would have a more serious negative impact on their life reported poorer future HRQoL. The emotional representations and identity dimensions also predicted multiple HRQoL domains. Conclusions Future research should focus on realising the potential of illness perceptions as a modifiable target for and mediating mechanism of interventions to improve patients' HRQoL. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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