Coping with a stoma - a comparative study of patients with rectal carcinoma of inflammatory bowel diseases

409 patients who had either an implantation of a stoma or a bowel resection for either colorectal carcinoma of colitis/ileitis answered a 200-item questionnaire. A discriminant analysis revealed a higher degree of pre- and postoperative depression and a decrease of social activities for stoma patients who also more often lived in rural areas in comparison with patients with the same diagnosis who only had a resection. A comparison of operated cancer patients with patients operated for ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease showed less depression before and after surgery in cancer patients. Cancer patients also frequently ceased sexual activities after the operation, and they came from much more remote rural areas than the comparison group, irrespective of the type of operation performed.