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Review
. 2018 Mar;20(1):13-22.
doi: 10.31887/DCNS.2018.20.1/ilangrollin.

Psycho-oncology

Isabelle Lang-Rollin  1 , Götz Berberich
Affiliations
Review

Psycho-oncology

Isabelle Lang-Rollin et al. Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2018 Mar.

Abstract
in English, Spanish, French

Medical progress, the improvement of general living conditions, and an increase in life expectancy have led to an increase in the general prevalence of oncologic disease. More importantly, more and more patients survive cancer or live with the disease for long periods of time. While the battle for survivorship is continuously being fought, improving patients' quality of life has come to the fore. Psychosocial issues may modulate the course of the disease, but mainly have a deep impact on patients' physical and mental wellbeing. Psycho-oncology has risen as a relatively new interdisciplinary field with the aim of addressing these issues and providing support for patients confronting numerous challenges throughout the different stages of the disease. In this article, we provide an overview of the current knowledge of body-mind interactions in cancer and an outline of the broad spectrum of psycho-oncologic care, with a special focus on the treatment of pain, fatigue, sexual issues, and fear of progression.

El progreso de la medicina, la mejora de las condiciones de vida en general y el aumento en la expectativa de vida han llevado a un incremento en la prevalencia de la enfermedad oncológica. Más importante aún es que, más y más pacientes sobreviven al cáncer o viven con la enfermedad por largos períodos de tiempo. Mientras que la batalla por la supervivencia se libra continuamente, la mejora en la calidad de vida de los pacientes ha pasado a primer plano. Los aspectos psicosociales pueden modular el curso de la enfermedad, pero tienen principalmente un profundo impacto en el bienestar físico y mental de los pacientes. La psico-oncología ha surgido hace poco como un campo interdisciplinario con el objetivo de abordar estos temas y dar soporte a los pacientes para que enfrenten numerosos desafíos a través de las diferentes etapas de la enfermedad. En este artículo se entrega una visión general del conocimiento actual de las interacciones cuerpo-mente en cáncer y un perfil del amplio espectro de los cuidados psico-oncológicos, con un foco especial en el tratamiento del dolor, la fatiga, temas sexuales y el temor al avance de la enfermedad.

Le progrès médical, l'amélioration des conditions générales de vie et l'allongement de l'espérance de vie ont augmenté la prévalence générale des maladies cancéreuses. Plus important encore, de plus en plus de patients survivent au cancer ou vivent avec la maladie pendant longtemps. Le combat pour la survie ne s'arrêtant pas, l'amélioration de la qualité de vie des patients passe au premier plan. Des problèmes psychosociaux peuvent moduler le cours de la maladie, mais ils ont surtout un profond impact sur le bien-être physique et mental des patients. La psycho-oncologie émerge comme un domaine interdisciplinaire relativement nouveau, dont le but est de résoudre ces problèmes et d'apporter un soutien aux patients confrontés à de nombreuses difficultés au cours des différents stades de la maladie. Nous donnons dans cet article une vue d'ensemble des connaissances actuelles des interactions corps-esprit dans le cancer et un aperçu du large spectre des soins psycho-oncologiques, en insistant en particulier sur le traitement de la douleur, de la fatigue, des problèmes sexuels et la peur de la progression de la maladie.

Keywords: body-mind interaction; cancer; psychosocial intervention; psychotherapy; quality of life.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Targets of psychooncologic interventions.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Psychosocial factors in cancer development and progression. UV, ultraviolet light
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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