Department of Psychiatry & National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre. All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi 110029
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancer among women. Following multimodality treatment approach survival has improved significantly. Despite effective therapies a significantly proportion of cancer patients will suffer social, emotional and psychological distress as a result of cancer diagnosis and treatment. As survivorship becomes more prevalent, appropriate consideration of quality of life is increasingly important.
The women undergoing adjuvant treatment suffer from anxiety, depression, adjustment problems, sleep loss and various cognitive changes like confusion, loss of concentration etc. In addition it adversely impacts on capacity to cope with disease burden. The financial burden is tremendous compounding the whole situation.
Psychosocial interventions have proven efficacious for helping patients and families confront the many issues that arise during this difficult time. Evidence is accumulating that psychological therapies improve emotional adjustment and social functioning, and reduce both treatment and disease-related distress in patients with cancer.
