The number one cause of cancer death in Taiwan is lung cancer. Of the few studies describing the experience of patients living with lung cancer, most use bivariate analyses to test associations between individual symptoms. Few have systematically investigated multiple symptoms. This prospective study was undertaken to explore the phenomenon of symptom distress, to investigate the presence of symptom clusters, and to examine the relationship of symptom clusters to symptom interference with daily life in Taiwanese lung cancer patients. A sample of 108 lung cancer patients was recruited using the Taiwanese version of the M. D. Anderson Symptom Inventory. Data were analyzed by hierarchical cluster analysis, factor analysis, Pearson correlation, t-test, and regression analysis. The top five most-severe symptoms were fatigue, sleep disturbance, lack of appetite, shortness of breath, and general distress. Factor analysis generated a two-factor solution (general and gastrointestinal symptoms) for symptom severity items. Consistent with the result from factor analysis, cluster analysis also indicated the same two cluster groups (general and gastrointestinal symptoms). Both clusters were significantly correlated with symptom interference items; however, the general symptom cluster presented higher correlation coefficients than did the gastrointestinal symptom cluster. These results provide an important basis for developing novel strategies to manage multiple symptoms in lung cancer patients and thereby improve their well-being.
This study underscores the importance of general obesity and central obesity as risk factors for prehypertension in the Taiwanese adult population. These two indices of obesity have different impacts on men and women.
In this mixed-methods study, the authors explored 348 Singaporean university students' subjective masculine norms, defined as individuals' perceptions of the most important social norms about men in a given group or society. Participants provided written responses to 6 open-ended prompts on their subjective masculine norms as well as their levels of endorsement of these norms. A directed content analysis of participants' qualitative responses identified providing for family, being a gentleman, emotional toughness, avoidance of inferiority to women, and avoidance of femininity as the 5 most prevalent and salient subjective masculine norms. Moderation analyses indicated that endorsement of subjective masculine norms was positively related to gender identity satisfaction and to life satisfaction for men, but not for women. A moderated mediation analysis indicated that gender identity satisfaction mediated the relationship between endorsement of subjective masculine norms and life satisfaction for men, but not for women. These findings are discussed within the context of how culture intersects with masculinities as well as the broader contributions of subjective masculine norms to the psychology of men and masculinities.
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