ABSTRACT

The present study investigated the effect of a mindfulness-based intervention on anxiety, depression symptoms, coping mechanisms and quality of life in a group of Romanian breast cancer inpatients. The Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) intervention was carried out in a group of female cancer patients, hospitalized and treated with radiotherapy at the Institute of Oncology "Prof. Dr. Ion Chiricuta" in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Our results indicate that the MBSR intervention did not reduce either negative affectivity, nor contribute to the flexibility of cognitive processes, nor to improvements in quality of life, but it helped reduce the isolation of patients assigned to the experimental group. This is the first published study that investigates the MBSR intervention in oncological settings in Romania.

KEYWORDS: breast cancer, distress, quality of life, isolation, MBSR

PAGES:135-148