Supportive psychotherapy and cancer: A new model for an old therapy Book Section
| Authors: | Lederberg, M. S.; Greenstein, M.; Holland, J. C. |
| Editors: | Holland, J. C.; Breitbart, W. S.; Butow, P. N.; Jacobsen, P. B.; Loscalzo, M. J.; McCorkle, R. |
| Article/Chapter Title: | Supportive psychotherapy and cancer: A new model for an old therapy |
| Abstract: | (from the chapter) Supportive psychotherapy for patients with cancer is the psycho-oncologist's (or psychosocial oncologist's) single most important tool. With ft, patients can be sustained throughout the fragmented course of their illness. It is both the simplest and most complex tool we have. Therapists must be knowledgeable about cancer as a medical disorder, skilled at assessing and managing patients psychologically, and comfortable with their own subjective experience in the face of complex and tragic medical situations. Further, the ability to recognize the patient's changing psychological needs requires sound clinical judgment and flexibility. Psycho-oncologists come from different disciplines, cultural backgrounds, and theoretical frameworks, yet all converge to deliver this vital service. The crucial piece-human interaction-is hard to fit into so many different theoretical frameworks, for which technical and theoretical terms are inadequate. We should not speak of supportive psychotherapy as a fallback, but rather as part of the fundamental care of cancer patients, a scaffolding that promotes adaptive coping. This scaffolding cannot be accomplished without personal involvement and "caring," as Francis Peabody once wrote.' This is no less true today, almost 100 years later. Human emotions are universal and unchanging-only medical treatments change. In this chapter, we define supportive psychotherapy in cancer care, and provide the beginner with basic therapeutic principles, while giving experienced therapists a fresh overview. Most lessons apply equally to patients with other life-threatening illnesses. Rather than necessarily providing solutions, we seek to identify techniques for managing situations that might otherwise be overwhelming. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved). |
| Keywords: | clinical judgment; cancer; supportive psychotherapy; psychosocial oncologists; changing psychological needs |
| Book Title: | Psycho-Oncology. 3rd ed |
| ISBN: | 978-0-19-936331-5 |
| Publisher: | Oxford University Press |
| Publication Place: | Oxford, UK |
| Date Published: | 2015-01-01 |
| Start Page: | 443 |
| End Page: | 448 |
| Language: | English |
| ACCESSION: | Book: 2014-48591-055 |
| DOI: | 10.1093/med/9780199363315.003.0055 |
| PROVIDER: | Ovid Technologies |
| PROVIDER: | psycinfo |
| DOI/URL: | |
| Notes: | Book Chapter: 55 -- Source: PsycINFO |
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