TY - JOUR
T1 - Traumatic stress symptoms and breast cancer
T2 - The role of childhood abuse
AU - Goldsmith, Rachel E.
AU - Jandorf, Lina
AU - Valdimarsdottir, Heiddis
AU - Amend, Kandace L.
AU - Stoudt, Brett G.
AU - Rini, Christine
AU - Hershman, Dawn
AU - Neugut, Alfred
AU - Reilly, James J.
AU - Tartter, Paul I.
AU - Feldman, Sheldon M.
AU - Ambrosone, Christine B.
AU - Bovbjerg, Dana H.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported in part by grant DAMD17-01-1-0334 from the Department of Defense and by grants CA81137 and CA100598 from the National Cancer Institute .
PY - 2010/6
Y1 - 2010/6
N2 - Objective: The present study investigated relations between reported childhood abuse and recent traumatic stress symptoms in women newly diagnosed with breast cancer (n=330). Methods: As part of a larger ongoing study, patients from eight public and private hospitals were referred by their physicians and completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), and the Impact of Events Scale-breast cancer (IES), which measured breast cancer-related intrusive and avoidant symptoms. Results: Emotional abuse, physical abuse, and sexual abuse were correlated with intrusive symptoms. Cancer-related avoidant symptoms approached significance in their relation to emotional and sexual abuse. Multivariate analysis, controlling for age and time since diagnosis, revealed that childhood emotional abuse was an independent predictor of breast cancer-related intrusive symptoms, but that childhood physical abuse and sexual abuse were not significant predictors. Conclusions: Childhood emotional, physical, and sexual abuse were associated with breast cancer-related intrusive symptoms. Emotional abuse uniquely predicted intrusive symptoms after controlling for other predictors. Results suggest that a cancer diagnosis may trigger cognitive and emotional responses that relate to patients' prior trauma experiences. Practice implications: Physicians and psychologists treating women with breast cancer should be aware that a history of childhood abuse may exacerbate patients' cancer-related intrusive symptoms. Interventions for women affected by both childhood abuse and breast cancer may be most effective when they address both stressors and associated emotional responses. Findings highlight the importance of additional research to explore links between prior trauma and distress following a cancer diagnosis stress.
AB - Objective: The present study investigated relations between reported childhood abuse and recent traumatic stress symptoms in women newly diagnosed with breast cancer (n=330). Methods: As part of a larger ongoing study, patients from eight public and private hospitals were referred by their physicians and completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), and the Impact of Events Scale-breast cancer (IES), which measured breast cancer-related intrusive and avoidant symptoms. Results: Emotional abuse, physical abuse, and sexual abuse were correlated with intrusive symptoms. Cancer-related avoidant symptoms approached significance in their relation to emotional and sexual abuse. Multivariate analysis, controlling for age and time since diagnosis, revealed that childhood emotional abuse was an independent predictor of breast cancer-related intrusive symptoms, but that childhood physical abuse and sexual abuse were not significant predictors. Conclusions: Childhood emotional, physical, and sexual abuse were associated with breast cancer-related intrusive symptoms. Emotional abuse uniquely predicted intrusive symptoms after controlling for other predictors. Results suggest that a cancer diagnosis may trigger cognitive and emotional responses that relate to patients' prior trauma experiences. Practice implications: Physicians and psychologists treating women with breast cancer should be aware that a history of childhood abuse may exacerbate patients' cancer-related intrusive symptoms. Interventions for women affected by both childhood abuse and breast cancer may be most effective when they address both stressors and associated emotional responses. Findings highlight the importance of additional research to explore links between prior trauma and distress following a cancer diagnosis stress.
KW - Breast cancer
KW - Child abuse
KW - Emotional abuse
KW - Intrusive symptoms
KW - Traumatic stress
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77952886674&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.chiabu.2009.10.007
DO - 10.1016/j.chiabu.2009.10.007
M3 - Article
C2 - 20400179
AN - SCOPUS:77952886674
SN - 0145-2134
VL - 34
SP - 465
EP - 470
JO - Child Abuse and Neglect
JF - Child Abuse and Neglect
IS - 6
ER -