Monitoring coping style moderates emotional reactions to genetic testing for hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer: a longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVES: The emotional effects of genetic testing for hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC) provided within a counseling program were assessed among 253 individuals. METHODS: Assessments were scheduled at baseline before testing, and again after 6 and 12 months post-test. Negative emotional reactions were evaluated using the Revised Impact of Event Scale and the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale. Monitoring coping style was assessed at baseline using the Miller Behavioral Style Scale. RESULTS: Mean reductions were indicated in distress and depression levels within the first 6 months after counseling and testing. High monitors were generally more distressed than low monitors, specifically if they had indeterminate or positive results. CONCLUSIONS: Genetic counseling and testing for HNPCC do not result in long-term distress for most people. Of the variables investigated, only time and coping style have main effects on emotional reactions, and the impacts of mutation status are moderated by coping style. Psychological interventions, aimed to alleviate adverse emotional effects, were suggested for certain participants, i.e. recipients of positive or indeterminate results who are high monitors.

Attitudes of asthmatic and nonasthmatic adolescents toward cigarettes and smoking.

A comparison study was made between attitudes of asthmatic and nonasthmatic adolescents toward cigarettes and smoking. Subjects were 67 asthmatic 9th- to 12th-grade students, of whom 38 (57%) had active asthma with recurrent cough and/or dyspneic attacks and 29 (43%) had reactive airway disease and/or the least severe form of asthma expressed by recurrent cough. The control group included 62 nonasthmatic students from the same high school. All subjects completed a questionnaire to determine attitudes, beliefs, and intentions regarding smoking. Their responses suggested that the group at highest risk of becoming smokers were those who had previously had asthma. The same adolescents had a more positive attitude toward cigarettes and smoking, a stronger intention to become smokers, and a self-image more closely linked with their perceptions of smokers. Thus, these adolescents may represent a high-risk group for becoming smokers in the future.