[Bereavement Care in Cancer]

Bereavement may become the most severe stressor in the lives of bereaved families, and it has a variety of influences on their psychological and physical aspects. Physical effects include worsening of physical conditions and an increase in the mortality, and psychological ones include increases in the suicide rate and morbidity of depression. Bereavement also has a social influence, such as causing changes in relationships. Therefore, it is necessary to provide bereaved families requiring support with appropriate intervention. Since bereaved families experience various types of distress, assessment of grief-related problems alone is inadequate. It is essential to assess the psychological, physical, social, and other aspects of bereaved families. Intervention can be expressed using the concept of postvention. There are various types of intervention : from care provided by non-specialists to psychiatric treatment provided by mental care specialists. Although bereavement is the strongest risk factor for depression, depressive symptoms following bereavement are often overlooked. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to such depression. Support is provided by not only health care professionals but also the general public in society, and it is essential to obtain knowledge of bereavement care in society. It should be noted that support not based on established knowledge may have an adverse effect on bereaved families (unhelpful support).