Caregiving Stress and Its Toll on Health From a Psychoneuroimmunological Perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this review was to discuss the psychological and physiological effects of caregiving stress in the general population as well as among cancer caregivers. Although caregiving for a loved one with cancer may be shorter in duration (i.e., number of months), it is often more intense (i.e., number hours per day) than caring for individuals with other chronic illnesses because cancer treatment has shifted toward outpatient therapy and placed a significant burden of informal caregiving on families, especially spouses/partners. Informal caregiving psychologically and physiologically taxes the caregiver and may negatively influence the caregiver’s health and well-being, regardless of chronic disease population. Unique to breast cancer and other female cancer populations, males often find themselves in the caregiving role. In addition, a paucity of research examining the role of caregiving among the cancer survivorship population exists, despite it being a very real possibility that survivors may find themselves in this position, given advancements in cancer treatment.