Effectiveness of Stress Coping Training on Immune System and Pain Level in Patients with Breast Cancer

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of teaching stress coping skills on the pain, quality of life of patients with breast cancer in Dezful. Method: This is a semi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design with a follow-up control group. For this purpose, 34 patients with study conditions were enrolled in the informal invitations. The patients were randomly divided into two groups of 17 controls and controls. The experimental group was trained in a 8-week, 1.5-hour stress-coping skills (Lazarus and Folkman, 1984), and the control group received a normal program until the end of their normal program. Both groups completed the pain intensity questionnaire before and after the program, and were evaluated in two stages in terms of the activity of natural lethal cells.Results: Descriptive results indicated a better status of the experimental group at the level of natural killer cells and reduced the pain and its dimensions compared to the control group. The results of multivariate covariance analysis with the control of the effect of pre-test showed that teaching stress coping skills improves the function of natural lethal cells in patients with breast cancer. The program also reduces the severity of pain and reduces pain interference in the daily functioning of these patients.

Effectiveness of Stress Coping Training on Immune System and Pain Level in Patients with Breast Cancer Keywords:

coping with stress , immune system , Natural Killer Cells , pain , breast cancer