New fears in gynecologic cancer

A review of the psychosocial oncology literature indicates the paucity of psychological services available in early detection programs, yet there is an increasing awareness of the need to attend to the psychosocial distress of women whose mothers have had ovarian cancer. The explosion of information transmitted to the public through the news media about ovarian cancer, early detection, and genetic susceptibility should heighten the scientific community's sensitivity to the apprehensions of women who are first-degree relatives of women with ovarian cancer.

The emotional fragility of participants in the early detection ovarian cancer screening program at Yale University is addressed through an initial counseling session. An open-ended, unstructured interview was designed to enable participants to express their concerns about ovarian cancer. This experience is being evaluated.

Through psychosocial assessment and evaluation, the authors observed that life cycle events, unresolved episodic grief, cognitive adaptation to loss, and interpersonal relationships contribute to the importance of total care and medical responsibility for the gynecologic cancer patient. Psychosocial counseling has been an integral component of the Yale Early Detection Program since its inception. Preliminary results suggest the necessity of continued counseling intervention to address women's increased anxieties about gynecologic cancers.

Special attention must be paid to the psychological needs of vulnerable subjects in disease-screening programs. Medical providers of early detection screening should rigorously explore the psychosocial aspects of early detection and provide appropriate intervention to meet women's needs.