Biomedical subjects

R McCorkle

Publications and source records attributed to R McCorkle.

96 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Factors associated with anger in cancer patients and their caregivers.

In this descriptive, longitudinal study, the authors explored the emotional symptom of anger among cancer patients and their caregivers at home. Anger was measured using an abbreviated version of the Siegel Multidimensional Anger Inventory during three interviews over a 6-month period. The sample consisted of 165 adults with solid tumors and 73 caregivers. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to measure the severity of anger and its association with selected demographic factors, symptom distress, functional status, physical caregiving responsibilities, and depression. Findings included overall low, stable anger scores for both patients and their caregivers; and significant associations among anger and symptom distress, age, depression, and church attendance for patients. These findings suggest that anger may be perceived as an unacceptable emotion and may appear in other forms such as symptom distress and depression. Alternative ways for measuring anger need examination and patients and caregivers may need guidance in addressing their anger.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Breast cancer and mammography: an American Cancer Society profile of Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties.

The American Cancer Society, Philadelphia Division, has completed a comprehensive profile of breast cancer and mammography in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties. The profile consists of three segments: (1) data on incidence of breast cancer and trends in stage at diagnosis; (2) estimates of breast cancer screening practices based on surveys of the population; and (3) results from a survey of mammography providers assessing the region's capacity for and access to mammography. The profile demonstrated that the Philadelphia Division is already close to achieving the national American Cancer Society's goals for breast cancer detection for the year 2000 for the percent of women screened and percent of cancers diagnosed in early stages. New and more ambitious goals for the Division must be set. Although capacity for mammography is high, outreach programs by mammography providers represent only 1% to 2% of all mammograms performed. The profile has been the cornerstone of new programmatic initiatives for the Division.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Burden of care and lung cancer.

PURPOSE: Although direct costs for treatment are important considerations in healthcare planning, the indirect costs of chronic care may have an even more profound impact on families. The burden of care of chronic illnesses is seldom addressed in healthcare policies. This article uses lung cancer as a model to illustrate the burden of care of chronic illness and to examine the many healthcare problems that affect patients, families, and society at large. OVERVIEW: Lung cancer, as a major cause of morbidity and mortality, and the second most expensive cost of cancer care, will impact more than 1 million Americans and their families in the next decade. In this article, a health services model is used to address burden of care for people with lung cancer. Predisposing factors, enabling factors, and need for healthcare are considered. Lung cancer literature related to emotional status, functional status, and symptom distress are reviewed as they relate to the physical, emotional, and social aspects of the burden of care. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The increasing responsibilities of the family in providing care in the face of limited external support, and the consequences of that caregiving, for the patient and family, raise serious concerns for clinicians. With quality of life as the ultimate health outcome, clinicians are challenged to contribute to a research and policy agenda that addresses burden of care.

Cost of Illness↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Natural killer cells over time in patients with colorectal cancer.

PURPOSE: The purposes of the investigation were: 1) to examine the natural killer (NK) cell levels in a homogeneous group of patients with cancer between the presurgical period and 6 months after surgery; 2) to identify changes in the number of NK cells over time; and 3) to determine whether an association exists among the number of NK cells, demographics, stage of cancer, and treatment variables. DESCRIPTION OF STUDY: A longitudinal descriptive design was used to study biopsychosocial factors in persons newly diagnosed with colorectal cancer over a 6-month period. RESULTS: Patients without ostomies had a significant decrease in NK levels over time, whereas patients with ostomies had a significant increase in NK levels over time. There was a difference in NK level over time for patients who were receiving the additional therapy of radiation alone and a combination of radiation and chemotherapy from those patients who were not receiving additional therapy. Natural killer levels in patients who were receiving radiation alone or a combination of radiation and chemotherapy significantly declined over time, where NK levels in patients receiving no additional treatment significantly increased over time. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Patients with low NK levels should be monitored during the course of their illness and cancer treatment to determine the relationship to immune status of other variables such as nutritional status, infection rates, and functional status.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Experiences of African American and Caucasian women who survive urban residential fires.

This study examined differences in socioeconomic characteristics, traumatic experiences suffered, and psychological distress in African American and Caucasian women 3 months after urban residential fires. Distress was measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). The sample included 310 women (224 African Americans and 86 Caucasians). The African American women had lower levels of education and income than the Caucasian women, and were more likely to be unmarried. Injury and deaths of loved ones were similar in the two groups; African American women reported greater loss of possessions, less insurance coverage, and less displacement than Caucasian women. African American and Caucasian women scored similarly on the BSI. Scores on the BSI for both groups were higher than the norms reported in the literature.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Enforced social dependency and its relationship to cancer survival.

PURPOSE: This study examined relationships between survival time and enforced dependency in a group of patients with cancer. DESCRIPTION OF STUDY: Data are reported from 141 patients with solid tumor cancers who participated in an interview around the time of their discharge from the hospital. Measures included medical history, demographic characteristics, and five measures of psychosocial status, including enforced personal and social dependency. Patients were followed 2 to 4 years later to ascertain survival status and, for those who had died, dates of death. Psychosocial variables were used as potential predictors in a multivariate model of survival time, which also included variables measuring severity of illness. RESULTS: Enforced personal and social dependency, but not the other psychosocial variables, were found to contribute significantly to the model of survival time. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: These findings suggest that survival of patients with cancer might be improved by an intervention targeted at enforced social dependency.

Activities of Daily Living↗