Hopelessness among cancer patients

The study aimed to explore whether social support, depression, and personal characteristics (age, gender, and stage of treatment) were main effects on hopelessness among 113 cancer patients in three phases of the illness: newly diagnosed, adjuvant chemotherapy, and recurrence. The instruments used were the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Support, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Beck Hopelessness Scale. The patients were being treated at an oncological medical center in northern Israel. The main findings indicated a strong correlation between hopelessness and depression. Multiple regression analyses, using hopelessness as a dependent variable and social support, illness phase, gender, and age as independent variables, indicated that patients with a high level of social support felt less of a sense of hopelessness. Phase of the illness had no effect on hopelessness. Additional findings indicated that the older the patient, the less his or her feeling of hopelessness.