Psychosomatics 46:19-24, February 2005
© 2005 The Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine
Anxiety, Emotional Suppression, and Psychological Distress Before and After Breast Cancer Diagnosis
Yumi Iwamitsu, Ph.D.,
Kazutaka Shimoda, M.D., Ph.D.,
Hajime Abe, M.D., Ph.D.,
Tohru Tani, M.D., Ph.D.,
Masako Okawa, M.D., Ph.D., and
Ross Buck, Ph.D.
Received Aug. 27, 2003; revision received March 2, 2004; accepted April 1, 2004. From the Department of Medical Psychology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kitasato University, Kanagawa; the Department of Psychiatry, Dokkyo University School of Medicine, Tochigi, Japan; the Department of Psychiatry and Surgery, Shiga University of Medical Science, Shiga, Japan; and the Department of Communication Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Iwamitsu, Department of Medical Psychology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kitasato University, 1-15-1 Kitasato, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 228-8555, Japan; iyumi{at}kitasato-u.ac.jp (e-mail).
The authors examined the influence of anxiety and emotional suppression on psychological distress in 21 patients with breast cancer and 72 patients with benign breast tumor. The patients with breast cancer who suppressed emotion and had chronically high levels of anxiety felt higher levels of emotional distress both before and after the diagnosis. Such patients need psychological interventions, including encouragement to express and communicate their emotions, immediately after disclosure of the diagnosis to help maintain psychological adjustment in the face of the disease.
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