Coping and survival in patients with leukemia undergoing allogeneic bone marrow transplantation--long-term follow-up of a prospective study

The exploratory study examined the relationship between coping and survival in patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation (BMT).

Patients scheduled for BMT were recruited from 1990 until 1995 at the University Hospital of Ulm, Germany. They were interviewed before transplantation, and the corresponding records were checked in December 2002. Seventy-two audiotaped interviews could be analyzed for 34 coping strategies as defined in the Ulm Coping Manual (UCM). Main outcome measure was survival time post-BMT.

On average, the patients were 35 years old, 65% were male, and 56% diagnosed acute leukemia (AL). Four coping strategies were found to show a clear trend towards an association with survival time: emotional support, acceptance, taking control, and compensation. The last strategy was associated with shorter, the others with longer survival.

We found further evidence for an association between coping and survival. Because of the possible wide-reaching consequences for clinical management, replication of the data is essential.