Relationship of General and Health-related Anxiety and Worry to Markers of Inflammation in Women with Advanced Cancer

Cancer diagnosis and treatment can provoke anxiety. Anxiety is accompanied by worry, which is the continual rehearsal of potential future negative consequences. Anxiety and worry in cancer patients are related to worse outcomes. However, the link between anxiety, worry and inflammation is understudied and inflammation may be one way through which anxiety and worry affect cancer outcome. The current study examined the relationship of anxiety, worry and health anxiety to inflammation in cancer patients. Women with recurrent or metastatic cancer of the breast or ovary (N=56) completed questionnaires measuring anxiety, health anxiety and worry and blood was drawn to measure inflammation, interleukins (IL), interferons (IFN) and tumor necrosis factors (TNF; IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IFN-¿¿, TNF-¿¿, Granulocyte Macrophage Colony Stimulating Factor, Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor). Results indicated anxiety was positively related to humoral inflammatory markers, IL-4, while worry was positively related to IL-4 and showed a quadratic relationship to TNF-¿¿. Health anxiety was unrelated to inflammation. High levels of anxiety and worry may be related to a shift away from anti-tumor immunity and towards humoral immunity. Worry was associated with overall exhaustion of the inflammatory response as indicated by TNF-¿¿. This study suggests worry as a future intervention target in cancer patients as well as an important factor in models of adaptation to the stress of cancer.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy

Level thesis:degree_level

doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychology

Grantor dc:publisher

The Ohio State University

Year dc:date

2013

Author dc:creator

• Wu, Salene M.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Andersen, Barbara

• Psychology
• cancer
• oncology
• anxiety
• worry
• inflammation
• immunity

Statement dc:rights

• unrestricted
• This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1356624916

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:osu1356624916