The word cancer is undoubtedly a heavy burden in our lives. For esophageal cancer patients, in addition to physical pain, psychological pressure and distress cannot be ignored.
Recently, Dr. Lv Huifang from Henan Provincial Cancer Hospital answered many questions about the psychology of esophageal cancer patients.
Dr. Lui Wai Fong.
Doctor of Medicine, Deputy Chief Physician.
Member of the Esophageal Tumor Integration Professional Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association.
Deputy Secretary-General of the Esophageal Tumor Integration Professional Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association.
He is a standing member of the Non-Invasive Tumor Professional Committee of China Life Care Association.
Member of the Digestive Tract Disease Professional Committee of the Chinese Medical Education Association.
Vice Chairman of the Cancer Prevention and Treatment Committee of Henan Life Care Association.
Mainly engaged in internal medicine of digestive system tumors**.
Psychology plays an important role in esophageal tumor integration.
Dr. Lu Huifang first pointed out that "diseases are born from the heart", and psychological factors play an important role in the occurrence, development and prognosis of diseases. Physical ailments bring psychological suffering, which in turn affects physical ailments. Therefore, psychological intervention is necessary for patients with esophageal cancer.
Psychology is to set up spiritual services for patients, deal with the pain of insomnia, pain, nausea and vomiting, boredom and fatigue, relieve the psychological problems of anxiety and depression, embrace them with society, solve their loneliness and isolation, and let them return to their families and find the meaning of life again.
According to research, psychological interventions can improve symptoms such as malnutrition and pain in cancer patients, thereby reducing the symptom burden. In addition, studies of gastrointestinal cancers have also shown that psychological and nutritional interventions can prolong survival.
Esophageal cancer patients face a variety of psychological problems and urgently need psychological counseling.
The data shows that 25 45% of cancer patients have anxiety and depression, 28 87% of patients have fear of **, 25% of patients suffer psychological pain, and 43 67% of patients have anxiety of death, and suicide is 5 times that of normal people.
Common psychological problems in patients with esophageal cancer mainly include: 1) anxiety, depression, pessimism and despair; 2) doubt, denial, avoidance; 3) Fear, nervousness, etc.
These problems cannot be solved by surgery or radiotherapy alone, but require psychological intervention. So, how to carry out psychological counseling for esophageal cancer patients? Professor Lv Huifang said that for patients at different stages, different psychological intervention strategies are needed. For example, patients in the early stages of diagnosis need to be helped to accept reality and be prepared to cope**; For patients during the ** period, they need to be encouraged to maintain an optimistic attitude and actively cooperate**; For patients after the end of the day, they need to be helped to rebuild their confidence and return to society and their families.
According to your own situation and the doctor's advice, choose the appropriate ** plan.
Patients with malignant tumors will face different psychological distress at different stages of the disease (such as the early stage of diagnosis, the positive stage, the end of life, the stage of progression, the end of life, and the bereavement stage). Doctors and patients strive to achieve empathy.
Empathy means that I can understand that you feel uncomfortable because of the rain, I can empathize with your emotions, and I am willing to hold an umbrella for you, emphasizing understanding the other person's feelings. The doctor should tell the patient that your pain is not terrible, do not be afraid, do not panic, trust the doctor, believe in yourself. Relying on the support of medical staff, family members and society, through drugs and non-drugs**, we can finally achieve the two goals of one center, so that patients can maximize their benefits, let patients survive longer, and have a higher quality of life.
In addition to psychological counseling, Dr. Lu Huifang also introduced the main strategies for esophageal cancer. For patients with early-stage esophageal cancer, surgery is the preferred method. For patients with locally advanced disease, preoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy can significantly reduce the local ** rate and improve the survival rate of patients. In addition, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and immunization are also important means. Regarding esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (esophageal squamous cell carcinoma alone) in China, the overall 5-year survival rate after surgery is currently about 277%~40.6%；Among them, the early stage (stage A) accounted for 1 3 of the surgical cases, and the 5-year survival rate was 503%~80%；Locally advanced (stage B-) accounted for 2 surgical cases, with a 5-year survival rate of 200%~25.0%。
In view of the current situation of simple surgery in China, Dr. Lv Huifang believes that preoperative simultaneous chemoradiotherapy + surgery is significantly better than simple surgery in terms of survival rate, which can reduce the local rate and overall rate and improve the survival rate of patients. At the same time, she also reminded the majority of patients and friends that they must fully consider their own conditions and doctors' suggestions when choosing the best plan, and do not blindly pursue the best results and ignore the best things that they bring. She said that for esophageal cancer patients, psychological ** can not only relieve their anxiety, depression and other negative emotions, but also improve their quality of life.