Hope, bias and survival expectations of advanced cancer patients: A cross-sectional study.
Psychooncology
; 30(5): 780-788, 2021 05.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33739561
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
Many patients with advanced illness are unrealistically optimistic about their prognosis. We test for the presence of several cognitive biases, including optimism bias, illusion of superiority, self-deception, misattribution, and optimistic update bias, that could explain unrealistically optimistic prognostic beliefs among advanced cancer patients and quantifies the extent to which hope exacerbates these biases.METHODS:
A cross-sectional survey was administered to 200 advanced cancer patients with physician-estimated prognoses of one year or less. Hope was measured using the Herth Hope Index (HHI). Hypotheses were tested using linear and logistic regressions and a structural-equation model.RESULTS:
Results are consistent with the presence of optimism bias, illusion of superiority, self-deception, and misattribution. All of these biases are amplified by higher levels of hope. Each 1-point higher HHI is associated with a 6% (OR 1.06; 95% CI 1.01-1.11) greater odds of believing their illness is curable, a 0.33-year (95% CI 0.17-0.49) longer expected survival, a 6% (OR 1.06; 95% CI 1.02-1.11) higher probability of believing that survival outcomes are better than the average patient, a 5% higher odds of believing primary intent of treatment is curative (OR 1.05; 95% CI 1.00-1.10), and a 12% (OR 1.12; 95% CI 1.05-1.17) higher odds of believing they are well-informed. Mediation analyses revealed that hope significantly mediates the effect of mental-well-being and loneliness on expected survival.CONCLUSIONS:
Results suggest advanced cancer patients succumb to several cognitive biases which are exacerbated by greater levels of hope. As a result, they are susceptible to possible over-treatment and regret.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Motivação
/
Neoplasias
Tipo de estudo:
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Psychooncology
Assunto da revista:
NEOPLASIAS
/
PSICOLOGIA
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Singapura