Being married or in a relationship significantly improves quality of life for prostate cancer patients following treatment, according to a study by researchers at UCLA’s Jonsson Cancer Center and the Department of Urology.
Partnered men reported better psychosocial and spiritual well-being, suffered fewer adverse effects from treatment and had less fear and anxiety about their cancer coming back than did their single counterparts, the study found. The research appears in the July 1, 2005, issue of the peer-reviewed journal CANCER, but is being published May 23 on the journal’s web site.
“The message for men with prostate cancer is this; it is good to be partnered and have a support system following treatment,” said Dr. Mark Litwin, the study’s senior author, a professor of urology and public health and a Jonsson Cancer Center researcher. “Now we need to find a way to encourage the use of support groups and support systems in patients who aren’t married or in relationships so they can do better, too.”
Assessing quality of life in prostate cancer patients is vital because many patients can live a long time with their disease, said Dr. John Gore, a urologist and the study’s first author.
“Quality of life is important because the quantity of life can be extensive for these patients,” Gore said. “We want quality of life to be as good as possible.”
Litwin, Gore and the research team focused on a severely disadvantaged group of prostate cancer patients in the study – low-income and uninsured or underinsured men enrolled in IMPACT, a state-funded public assistance program created at UCLA that provides free prostate cancer care. The study participants - 211 married or partnered men and 80 single men - answered a battery of quality of life questions in three questionnaires sent out every six months for 18 months. The questions assessed mental health, spirituality, stress created by urinary function or dysfunction and adverse affects caused by their treatment.
The partnered men were less depressed and less bothered by emotional problems such as anxiety and fear about disease recurrence. They were less upset about urinary problems and less distressed by the nausea, fatigue and pain that can follow cancer treatment. They also reported a higher spirituality than their single counterparts, Gore said.
Being able to assess and influence quality of life also is important because studies have shown that cancer survival is impacted by a patient’s quality of life. Some studies have suggested that improved quality of life might translate into improved survival, although that has not yet been confirmed. However, only about 13 percent of prostate cancer patients attend support group meetings. That leaves a large population of prostate cancer patients that might experience a better quality of life by leaning on their spouses or partners more or, for the single men, by attending support group meetings, Gore said.