Publications by authors named "Marta Opezzo"
Objective: To examine the relationship between demoralization and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in a sample of end-of-life cancer patients with a life expectancy of 4 months or less undergoing palliative care, controlling for sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological variables.
Methods: Sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological data from 170 end-of-life cancer patients were collected using the following scales: Edmonton Symptom Assessment System for palliative care patients' symptoms; Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depressive symptoms; Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy Scale - General Measure (FACT-G) for HRQoL; Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Spiritual Well-Being for spirituality (FACIT-Sp); Demoralization Scale - Italian Version (DS-IT) for demoralization.
Results: The DS-IT showed that 51.
Objective: Hope promotes oncology patients' adaptability to their illness, regardless of the stage of cancer. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of hope in a sample of end-of-life patients and to investigate the possible relationships between hope and a set of clinical and psychosocial measures.
Method: Three hundred and fifty end-of-life oncology patients, with a presumed life expectancy of 4 months or less and a Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) of 50 or lower, were administered the Italian validated versions of a set of rating scales during their first consultation with a psychologist.
Context: Patients' personality traits can play an important role in the end-of-life care process.
Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between personality traits and dignity in cancer patients nearing death. In addition, the associations between personality traits and physical, psychological symptoms, and coping strategies during the end-of-life stage were explored.
Article Synopsis
- Demoralization in end-of-life cancer patients is characterized by feelings of helplessness, loss of meaning, and impaired self-esteem, affecting a significant portion of this population.
- A study involving 235 patients found that 50.2% experienced medium levels of demoralization, and various factors contributing to this condition were identified, including emotional distress and a sense of failure.
- The findings indicate that as cancer patients approach death, their levels of demoralization may increase, highlighting the importance of recognizing and addressing these mental health issues in palliative care.
This study aimed to investigate "Faith" and "Meaning/Peace" dimensions of the functional assessment of chronic illness therapy-spiritual well-being scale (FACIT-Sp-12) in relation to coping strategies, anxiety and depression, and to analyze the relationship between FACIT-Sp-12 and the daily spiritual experience scale in end-of-life cancer patients. A sample of 152 participants were involved. The daily spiritual experiences correlated the most with "Faith" subscale.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Cancer patients often have to face increasing levels of existential distress (ED) during disease progression, especially when nearing death. This cross-sectional study aimed to assess the prevalence of the dignity-related existential distress (DR-ED) in a sample of end-of-life cancer patients, and to explore the "existential distress" Patient Dignity Inventory (PDI-IT) subscale internal structure and its associations with different coping strategies.
Methods: Two hundred seven cancer inpatients with a Karnofsky Performance Status ≤50 and a life expectancy of 4 months or less have been examined with the following self-report measures: PDI-IT, Demoralization Scale (DS-IT) and Brief Coping Orientation to Problem Experienced (Brief-COPE).