Socio-cultural, Behavioral & Psychological Issues
A diagnosis of breast cancer is often the beginning of many serious issues that affect not only a woman's quality of life, but her treatment experience, and perhaps how long she may live. Because no breast cancer survivor knows whether her treatment has resulted in a cure, there is a lifetime of uncertainty for her, her family and loved ones. This medical and psychological uncertainty is often made worse by the fear of subsequent discrimination in public life such as the workplace, health insurance coverage and so on.
In this cycle, CBCRP funded 5 grants in this area, in addition to two other grants (in the health policy and innovative treatment priority areas) which have significant socio-cultural, behavioral and psychological components. Significantly, four of these seven involve a partnership between community organizations and community researchers through our Community Research Collaboration (CRC) award.
The topics in this area the CBCRP funded in 2001 include:
-
Health behaviors: improving early detection behaviors among underserved populations.
-
Quality of life: understanding and increasing adherence to a healthy diet among survivors to improve psychological well-being and, perhaps, affect recurrence, and examining how family stress, particularly children's, affects patients' well-being and coping.
-
Providing support: studying the efficacy of an internet support group to improve quality of life for breast cancer survivors.
Of the two grants in other areas, a Health Policy and Services award (Spiegel and Bliss-Isberg) will study how peer navigators affect patients' care while also studying the effect on the well being of the navigators themselves. The other Health Policy and Services award (Maly) will look at how personal and inter-personal factors (particularly patient-physician interaction affect breast cancer care outcomes), as well as health care system factors affect quality of life.
Women with Breast Cancer: Quality of Life and Diet Adherence
Bardwell, Wayne
University of California, San Diego
3 years, $164,427
Tax Check-off Grant
Breast Cancer Prevention and Control Among Deaf Women
Berman, Barbara
University of California, Los Angeles
Kleiger, Heidi
Greater Los Angeles Council on Deafness
1.5 years, $109,707
Influence of Child's Stress on Women with Breast Cancer
Ducker, Dalia
California School of Professional Psychology
Levine, Ellen
California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute
1.5 years, $129,000
Effectiveness of Internet vs. Face-to-Face Support Groups
Golant, Mitch
The Wellness Community-National
Lieberman, Morton
University of California, San Francisco
3 years, $586,593
A Network-Based Intervention for Chamorros in Southern CA
Sablan-Santos, Lola
Guam Communications Network, Inc.
Tanjasiri, Sora
University of California, Irvine
3 years, $573,010
