Self-care responses to illness of patients with various cancer diagnoses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between self-care responses and variables concerning health status, disease and treatment, socioeconomic resources, demographic characteristics, and health beliefs in a heterogeneous sample of 227 cancer patients referred to home care. Data were collected prior to discharge from the hospital using the OARS Functional Assessment Questionnaire, the Karnofsky Performance Status, the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, and the Preference for Participation in Care Tool. The results indicated that the variables related to health status, disease and treatment were highly correlated with self-care behavior (SCB), and to a lower extent to self-care preference (SCP). Karnofsky performance status, cancer-related impairments, perceived physical health, and stage of disease were identified as significant predictors of SCB explaining 57% of the variance. Age, gender, education, live-in resources, and perceived mental health were dominant predictors of SCP explaining only 17% of the variance. Further research endeavors should investigate other models that might prove to be better predictors of SCP.