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

Wu, Salene M.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1356624916

Abstract Details

2013, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Psychology.
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.
Barbara Andersen, PhD (Advisor)
Charles Emery, PhD (Committee Member)
Ruchika Prakash, PhD (Committee Member)
Julian Thayer, PhD (Committee Member)
137 p.
Psychology
cancer; oncology; anxiety; worry; inflammation; immunity

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Wu, S. M. (2013). Relationship of General and Health-related Anxiety and Worry to Markers of Inflammation in Women with Advanced Cancer [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1356624916

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Wu, Salene. Relationship of General and Health-related Anxiety and Worry to Markers of Inflammation in Women with Advanced Cancer. 2013. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1356624916.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Wu, Salene. "Relationship of General and Health-related Anxiety and Worry to Markers of Inflammation in Women with Advanced Cancer." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1356624916

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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© 2012, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.