Factors Affecting Suicidal Thoughts in Breast Cancer Patients

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Women diagnosed with breast cancer experience severe trauma. Psychological help for breast cancer patients is not sufficient because of limited professional resources. The goal of this study was to identify groups of breast cancer patients with the greatest suicidal risk, who could be the first target for psychosocial interventions. Materials and Methods: The study included 421 women with stage T1–T3/N0–N3/M0 breast cancer. We provided women with a set of questionnaires 1–2 days prior to breast surgery and one year after surgery. One hundred eighty-eight patients completed the questionnaires after one year. We used the Beck Depression Inventory Second Edition (BDI-II) item Suicidal Thoughts or Intentions for the assessment of suicidal risk. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) was used to measure the risk of PTSD and the Vrana–Lauterbach Traumatic Events Questionnaire-Civilian, TEQ-C (TEQ-CV) was used to measure whether patients had experienced other traumatic events in their lifetime. Results: The incidence of suicidal ideation one year after surgery increased from 4.3% to 12.8% of patients. Patients who lived in rural areas had a two times greater risk of suicidal thoughts than patients who lived in urban areas. Working patients were 2.5 times more likely to have suicidal thoughts prior to surgery. Severely traumatic events increased the chances of suicidal ideation (OR 7.72; 95% CI 1.63–36.6; p = 0.01). The symptoms of PTSD showed a threefold increase in the likelihood of suicidal ideation (OR 2.89; 95% CI 0.98–8.55; p = 0.05). Conclusions: Living in the countryside, having a history of traumatic experience, having a paid job and having symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder influence suicidal ideation in breast cancer patients. Particular attention should be drawn to individuals with multiple risk factors.

Harms and benefits of mammographic screening for breast cancer in Brazil

“…Another limitation of the present study is the non-inclusion of outcomes related to quality of life, given the recognized psychological effects of common screening outcomes such as false-positive results [ 46 ] and the overdiagnosis of breast cancer [ 23 ]. Although deaths by suicide associated with overdiagnosis were considered in the study, less extreme cases, such as depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder, are more prevalent and may be persistent [ 64 ]. Non-lethal adverse effects of overtreatment were also not considered in the present study, such as radiotherapy-induced acute dermatitis, which is common but generally of moderate intensity [ 65 , 66 ].…”

Possible Mental Health Interventions for Family Members of a Close Relative Who Has Suicidal Thoughts or Committed Suicide: A Pilot Project at a Mental Health Center

“…Further programs would aim to include more men, making such programs more attractive to them, and they could be among the priorities for suicide prevention [39]. Also, research data show that cancer patients are at increased risk of suicide, and the needs in this broad field are not adequately addressed [28,[40][41][42]. In addition, research findings have demonstrated that pets and animal-assisted therapy could be beneficial in suicide prevention; the bonds between humans and animals can provide a relaxing experience, decrease psychological pain, and increase the sense of purpose and engagement [43].…”

Factores predisponentes de riesgo suicida en adultos: una revisión sistemática

“…En ese sentido, se encontraron diversas variables psicosociales asociadas al riesgo suicida. De relación directa, la más reiterativa fue la depresión (Kazlauskiene et al, 2022), debido a que conlleva a un déficit en la percepción y decodificación de los estímulos emocionales y los estados mentales (Khosravi & Hassani, 2022), lo que ocasiona apatía en el individuo y genera inactividad prolongada y conductas suicidas (Xiao et al, 2022). Por tal motivo, se precisa que la depresión hace que las personas se sientan aisladas e ineficientes (Anbesaw et al, 2021), dando apertura a las emociones negativas, lo cual empeora el estado de ánimo y genera un mayor riesgo suicida (Guo et al, 2021).…”