The Influence of Cancer‐related Distress and Sense of Coherence on Anxiety and Depression in Patients with Hereditary Cancer

Abstract

This study examines the association between Sense of Coherence and anxiety and depression amongst patients at risk of hereditary cancer receiving genetic counseling. When writing this article, 144 patients referred for genetic counseling due to a suspicion of hereditary cancer in the family were recruited for this multicentered longitudinal study on the psychosocial aspects of genetic counseling in Norway. A total of 96 (66%) patients responded to the follow‐up survey distributed 6 months after genetic counseling. This survey included the Sense of Coherence‐29 Scale, Impact of Event Scale, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Multiple regression analyses were applied. Our results show association between cancer‐related distress and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Sense of Coherence is significantly associated with both anxiety and depression. The hypothesis of Sense of Coherence buffering cancer‐related distress and the possible impact of these findings for genetic counseling are discussed.