Abstract
To summarize our study results, in patients with digestive cancer, depression was more prevalent in patients with rectal cancer, a positive family history of psychiatric disorder, existence of pain, presence of somatization, and projection as parts of primitive defense mechanisms, and use of neurotic defense mechanisms. As denial scores increased, the prevalence of depression decreased. Denial had a protective effect on the occurrence of depressive symptoms and depression. Furthermore, depression was less prevalent among patients using mature defense mechanisms.
Highlights
The most frequently observed psychopathology among patients with cancer is mood disorder
Denial in patients with digestive system cancer can have a protective effect against depression and should be considered by clinicians when providing information regarding the illness and its prognosis
Mood disorder is an important psychiatric disorder that should be considered in patients with cancer because it affects the quality of life, self-care, patients’ adherence to therapy, and severity, course, and response to cancer therapy [1]
Summary
The most frequently observed psychopathology among patients with cancer is mood disorder. A significant association is observed between types of cancer and depression. A study that assessed the association between depression and types of cancer observed that patients with pancreatic cancer were more depressed than those with other cancer types [3]. Some studies proposed that a new diagnosis of “maladaptive denial of physical disease” should be added to DSM [4,5]. The denial of cancer interview, developed by Vos, et al enables self-evaluation of denial level by a patient and evaluation of denial grading by a clinician. Denial is a common psychological phenomenon observed in patients with cancer [4]. This study aimed to investigate the association among depression, denial, and other defense mechanisms in patients with digestive system cancers
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