Memory processes and the course of anxiety and depression in cancer patients
Background. Intrusive memories of stressful events, many involving illness and death, are found in a minority of depressed cancer patients, and may predict the course of anxiety and depression. Method. Matched samples of mild to moderately depressed and non-depressed cancer patients were followed up...
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Veröffentlicht in: | Psychological medicine 1998-01, Vol.28 (1), p.219-224 |
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Zusammenfassung: | Background. Intrusive memories of stressful events,
many involving illness and death, are found in
a minority of depressed cancer patients, and may predict the course
of anxiety and depression. Method. Matched samples of mild to moderately depressed and
non-depressed cancer patients were
followed up after 6 months. Anxiety and depression at follow-up were
related to measures of
intrusive memories of stressful life events and autobiographical
memory functioning that had been assessed at baseline. Results. Levels of anxiety and depression remained fairly
constant over time in the two groups, and
the depressed group continued to experience high levels of intrusive
memories. The presence of
intrusive memories at baseline, and the extent to which these memories
were consciously avoided,
predicted greater anxiety at follow-up, even after controlling for
initial severity of physical and
psychiatric symptoms. None of the measures of memory functioning
predicted levels of depression at follow-up. Conclusions. Intrusive memories appear to be a marker of
more prolonged psychopathology in
cancer patients and may respond to direct therapeutic intervention. |
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ISSN: | 0033-2917 1469-8978 |
DOI: | 10.1017/S0033291797006028 |