Directions for a psychology research agenda in cancer.

Abstract

The challenge for this task force was to outline potential contributions of psychology to address the cancer problem, the second major cause of death and disability in the United States. The first section of this report provides general directions for behavioral and psychological research. These contributions span description, the study of mechanisms underlying psychological and behavioral responses, and efforts to reduce incidence, morbidity, and mortality. (For the reader unfamiliar with the literature, an accompanying article—Andersen, this issue—reviews previous accomplishments.) The present discussion is organized into disease-relevant intervals. Although the majority of topics fit within this division, certain themes (e.g., the importance of theory for the understanding and integration of empirical findings) are relevant to all. A second section addresses two important contexts for research and development: research training and funding. A final section provides a brief discussion of dissemination of psychological and behavioral findings. We have undoubtedly overlooked important topics; however, the overriding principle of this report is to provide a stimulus for discussion and future programmatic research efforts.