UCLA scientists study well-being of long-term lung cancer survivors

By Emily Leung
Daily Bruin contributor
[email protected]

About half of long-term lung cancer survivors are enjoying a
“good quality of life” according to a first-of-its-kind
study at UCLA’s Jonsson Cancer Center.

The findings, published in the July 1 issue of the Journal of
Clinical Oncology, found that treating patients’ emotional
and psychological well-being is more important to the patients than
previously believed.

“This is the first study that took a look at lung cancer
survivors out there and found out that it’s not just about
the amount of life that people have but the quality of that
life,” said Dr. Linda Sarna, professor at the UCLA School of
Nursing and lead author of the study.

It is estimated that 169,000 people will be diagnosed with lung
cancer this year, according to the American Cancer Society. Much
research has been devoted to lung cancer, but Sarna believes there
isn’t enough research done on patients’ emotional and
psychological well-being.

“It is an understudied field because rehabilitation for
long-term lung cancer patients, those in remission for five or more
years, has focused on remedying or managing physical problems in
the past,” Sarna said.

Sarna and Dr. Donald Tashkin, a pulmonologist who co-authored
the report, originally expected to find lung cancer
survivors’ emotional quality of life to be lower than
long-term survivors of other cancers.

“Lung cancer patients often face more life-long physical
challenges, like breathing difficulties, when they’ve had all
or part of a lung removed,” said Sarna.

“Instead, we were surprised to find that more than 50
percent of long-term lung cancer survivors ““ those in
remission for five or more years ““ said they have good
quality of life despite decreased lung function,” she
added.

Among the survivors who reported poorer quality of life,
researchers found that depression had the greatest impact on the
survivor’s life quality.

Quality of life was measured in four components ““
emotional well-being, social well-being, physical well-being and
spiritual well-being. Patients rated the factors on a scale from
1-10 based on their perception of their own well-being.

Of the 142 long-term lung cancer survivors who volunteered to be
interviewed and surveyed, 50 percent stated that their illness had
made a positive change in their life, while 71 percent of the group
described themselves as being “hopeful” about the
future.

As time passes after a patient is diagnosed with lung cancer,
priorities of survivors may shift from illness- and
treatment-related problems to social and interpersonal concerns,
according to Sarna.

Fifty percent of the 142 survivors who have severe limitations
in lung function may be working harder to breathe, which affects
their physical quality of life overall. But for some, this handicap
doesn’t affect their emotional state of mind or outlook on
life.

“Once you have been diagnosed with cancer, you can never
really detach yourself from it ““ it’s part of your
life,” said Patricia Stephens, a 58-year-old lung cancer
survivor in remission for seven years. “But the extent to
which you make it central and the focus of your life is a
choice.”

Stephens is one of the nine million cancer survivors in the
United States, according to the American Cancer Society. She
believes the study will encourage people to learn from their cancer
experiences.

“(People) should find the silver lining and use this
experience to move forward in a way that is conscious and helpful
to them,” Stephens said. “For me, I’ve always
appreciated my friends and family … but never have I ever been so
committed to living and loving as I do now.”