Communication is a problem for many cancer sufferers, who try to hide their emotions, writes Brendan Glacken
Cancer sufferers should be aware of the "tyranny of positive thinking", and of being forced to feel positive about their condition, according to consultant psychiatrist at St James's Hospital, Dublin, Dr Ann-Marie O'Dwyer.
At a presentation by the Irish Cancer Society at Dublin's Westbury Hotel, an attendance of over 100 people were told of the "emotional rollercoaster" faced by those enduring cancer.
Dr O'Dwyer noted that while "fear is the common thread running through the emotive side of cancer", people should be wary of being coerced into feeling "positive" because of the popular, but unproven, theory that such feelings are essential for recovery.
Dr O'Dwyer was chairing a public presentation by the Irish Cancer Society on the human side of cancer, which offered practical advice on understanding and managing the emotional effects of cancer, from diagnosis stage onwards.
Dr O'Dwyer said that when it came to cancer diagnostic options, "information is power", and patients should do all they could to seek out as much detail as possible, in order to lessen their own fears. She noted too the phenomenon observed by Dr Jimmie Holland, in his book The Human Side of Cancer, that some people have a paradoxical increase in their distress and feeling of vulnerability when cancer treatment finishes, mainly because they are now without the protective effects of treatment, and feel they are no longer being watched closely by their doctors.
Communication is "a big problem" for many cancer sufferers, according to Dr O'Dwyer, but for patients to deceive people, either families or friends, about their condition, is more stressful. Fear must also be dealt with, and while self-help groups are of use to some, specific psychological interventions may be needed for others. Dr O'Dwyer noted that anti-depressants "in general work well, though they get a bad press".
In a less serious aside, Dr O'Dwyer told of how she once spoke to a cancer sufferer about "living in the moment", who responded that if everyone adopted that attitude, "there would be more renters than buyers".
Dr Sonya Collier of St James's Hospital pointed out that there was no "right way" of coping with cancer, and that everyone found a different way.
She noted the "blame the victim" syndrome, whereby it is suggested that people with lung cancer, for example, have drawn the disease on themselves, even though cancer is a genetic disease and 10 per cent of lung cancer sufferers have never smoked.
"If we can blame the victim, we provide a psychological basis for protecting ourselves."
The Irish Cancer Society intends to organise further presentations, particularly in the field of psycho-oncology which studies the human and emotional and psychological aspects of cancer diagnosis.
The National Cancer Helpline number is 1800 200 700