Investigation of fear of recurrence, psychological well-being and prosociality level in cancer patients

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the level of fear of recurrence, psychological well-being, and prosociality in cancer patients in the remission period and to determine the variables affecting them. Methods: This descriptive-cross-sectional type study was conducted between August and December 2023 with 172 cancer patients in remission in the medical oncology outpatient clinic of a state hospital in Ankara, Turkey. Data were collected using the Descriptive Information Form, Fear of Cancer Recurrence Inventory (FCRI), Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWBS), and Adult Prosociality Scale (APS). SPSS 26 statistical software was used for statistical analysis. Results: The mean FCRI score of the participants was 13.33±13.78, the mean PWBS score was 46.88±4.28, and the mean APS score was 61.42±5.18. A statistically significant difference was found between FCRI scores according to the patients' previous psychiatric treatment status, between PWBS scores according to their educational status, and between APS scores according to gender (p<0.05). In addition, a statistically significant positive correlation was found between PWBS scores and APS scores (p<0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of this study, patients had low levels of fear of relapse and high levels of psychological well-being and prosociality. Previous psychiatric treatment was found to be effective on fear of relapse, education on psychological well-being, and gender on prosociality. In addition, as the prosociality levels of the patients increased, their psychological well-being levels also increased. Therefore, it is recommended to increase prosocial behaviors as a means of enhancing psychological well-being, given the positive relationship between them.