The Relationships between Stigma, Distress, and Quality of Life in Patients with Lung Cancer

Jung Lim Lee; Keum Soon Kim

doi:10.5388/jkon.2011.11.3.237

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Lee and Kim: The Relationships between Stigma, Distress, and Quality of Life in Patients with Lung Cancer

Original Article

Journal of Korean Oncology Nursing

Journal of Korean Oncology Nursing 2011; 11(3): 237-246.

Published online: 30 November 2011

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5388/jkon.2011.11.3.237

The Relationships between Stigma, Distress, and Quality of Life in Patients with Lung Cancer

Jung Lim Lee¹, Keum Soon Kim²

¹Unit Manager, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.

²Professor, College of Nursing, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.

Address reprint requests to: Lee, Jung Lim. Samsung Medical Center, 50 Irwon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul 135-710, Korea. Tel: +82-2-2148-7974, Fax: +82-2-3410-0950, junglim0202.lee@samsung.com

Received 30 September 2011 Accepted 2 November 2011

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between stigma, distress, and quality of life (QOL) in patients with lung cancer.

Methods

The subjects of the study were 123 lung cancer patients who visited the outpatient department of S hospital in Seoul from July 21st to August 29th, 2011. To measure stigma, distress, and QOL, Cataldo Lung Cancer Stigma Scale, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and EORTC QLQ-C30 (Quality of Life Questionnaire, Core 30) were used in this study. The collected data were analyzed using frequency, average, t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation with SPSS WIN 19.0.

Results

Stigma showed positive correlations with anxiety, depression, and symptom (r=.37, p<.001; r=.44, p<.001; r=.23 p=.012), while it showed negative correlations with global QOL and function (r=-.26, p=.003; r=-.40, p<.001). Anxiety and depression also positively correlated with symptoms (r=.43, p<.001; r=.58, p<.001) while anxiety and depression negatively correlated with global QOL (r=-.40, p<.001; r=-.56, p<.001) and function (r=-.64, p<.001; r=-.66, p<.001).

Conclusion

The findings of the study demonstrated that lung cancer patients experienced stigma and distress that had a negative influence on the subjects' QOL. Thus the study's findings can be useful in developing psychosocial nursing strategies to improve QOL of lung cancer patients in the future.

Keywords: Lung Neoplasms, Social Sigma, Anxiety, Depression, Quality of Life

Figures and Tables

Table 1

General and clinical characteristics of study subjects (N=123)

Table 2

Mean scores of stigma, distress and quality of life (N=123)

Table 3

Stigma according to general and clinical characteristics in patients with lung cancer (N=123)

Table 4

Distress according to general and clinical characteristics in patients with lung cancer (N=123)

Table 5

Quality of life according to general and clinical characteristics in patients with lung cancer (N=123)

Table 6

Pearson correlation coefficients of stigma, distress and quality of life in patients with lung cancer (N=123)

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