Schematic illustration of the BOUNCE multi-scale breast cancer resilience framework linked to distinct illness outcomes.
Bouncing back from breast cancer A diagnosis of breast cancer can lead to other significant psycho-social problems, causing anxiety and depression in some patients. Researchers in the BOUNCE project are developing a model of patient resilience that can then be used to guide decision-making and help patients to bounce back to healthy functioning and maintain satisfactory quality of life while facing breast cancer, as Dr Paula Poikonen-Saksela from Helsinki University Hospital explains.
Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash
A diagnosis of
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breast cancer is often upsetting for the individual concerned, and alongside the direct implications for physical health it can also lead to psychological problems such as anxiety and depression. “The results of the BOUNCE project can enhance adaptive coping and resilience trajectory and support patients to maintain their everyday lives and functioning in various life domains while they complete their course of treatment.” says Dr Paula PoikonenSaksela, the project’s coordinator. The Bounce project is an international initiative, in which researchers from five different countries are studying breast cancer patients who have been recently diagnosed with early
stage breast cancer, and have good prospects of a full recovery. “The aim is to facilitate the resilience trajectory from the very beginning of the oncological treatment, outlines Dr Poikonen-Saksela.
Bounce project Naturally, there is a large variability in the ways patients respond to their initial breast cancer diagnosis and this heterogeneity is likely to be based on their personal characteristics, the severity of the medical situation, and their supportive resources. The aim in the project is to develop a model of personal resilience to breast cancer, focusing specifically on women between the ages of 40-70. “Breast
cancer is rare in women under the age of 40, and we decided to include in our study typical breast cancer patients. The median age of breast cancer patients is around 60,” says Dr Poikonen-Saksela. The Bounce project targets different multi-faceted aspects of resilience in the various domains of life and functioning such as anxiety and depression symptoms, sense of coping efficacy, flexibility in coping, functional impairment, compliance with medical treatment and perceived support. “We consider resilience as a potential that can be built and change over time and we are keen to enhance the related factors to facilitate healthy trajectory of coping with breast cancer. Resilience is manifested in everyday life in the
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