I am feeling stressed, are you?: Breast cancer patients and caregivers' inter-psychophysiological symptoms during the first year of breast cancer treatment.

OBJECTIVE: Breast cancer treatment can be a stressful time for both the patient and their caregiver. Both patients and caregivers can experience increases psychophysiological distress (e.g., pain interference, fatigue, anxiety, depressive symptoms, perceived health); however, it is not clear how psychophysiological distress before treatment is linked to distress during the first year of treatment both interpersonally and intrapersonally.

METHODS: The present study recruited 54 patient-caregiver dyads during diagnosis before breast cancer treatment started. Both patients and caregivers complete self-reported surveys at baseline (before treatment), then 6-weeks, 6-months, and 12-months after the start of treatment. Specifically, we examine trajectories of psychophysiological change using Actor-Partner Interdependence Models (APIMs) Growth Curve Models and clinically specific times of psychophysiological influence using APIM path analyses.

RESULTS: Results indicate that patient and caregiver psychophysiological distress before treatment is linked to psychophysiological distress during the first year of treatment both intrapersonally and interpersonally but somewhat differently depending on the symptom. For example, for perceived health there are no interpersonal effects and for fatigue caregivers appear to experience the majority of psychophysiological distress effects.

CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that medical practitioners could evaluate patients and their caregivers for psychophysiological distress prior to breast cancer treatment and consider referrals to therapy or psychoeducation to help with symptom management throughout the first year of treatment.