Abstract
Goals
The aims of this study were (1) to evaluate the treatment efficacy of life review interviews on the spiritual well-being of terminally ill cancer patients, and (2) to explore any differences in the responses of patients who obtained clinical benefits and those who did not.
Materials and methods
Structured life review interviews were conducted with 12 patients in a palliative care unit in Japan. They completed the SELT-M (Skalen zur Erfassung von Lebens qualitat bei Tumorkranken–Modified Version) questionnaire before and after the interviews. The patients were classified into two groups: effective (patients who showed an increase in the SELT-M scores after the intervention) and noneffective groups. Meaningful spoken sentences from the patients’ life reviews were transcribed and correspondence analysis was conducted on the sentences using text mining software.
Results
The mean overall QOL score and spirituality subscale score of the SELT-M significantly increased after the life reviews from 2.57±0.61 to 3.58±1.0 (P=0.013) and 2.57±0.61 to 3.14±2.25 (P=0.023), respectively. Three dimensions were extracted from the effective group based on the scores “Positive view of life,” “Pleasure in daily activities and good human relationships,” and “Balanced evaluation of life.” Similarly, three dimensions were extracted from the noneffective group: “Worries about future caused by disease,” “Conflicts in family relationship problems,” and “Confrontation of practical problems.”
Conclusion
Life review interviews may be effective in improving the spiritual well-being of terminally ill cancer patients. The potential predictors of treatment success are “positive view of life,” “pleasure in daily activities and good human relationships,” and a “balanced evaluation of life,” while those of treatment failure are “worries about future caused by disease,” “conflicts in family relationships,” and “confrontation of practical problems.” Further intervention trials on patients with predictors of treatment success are promising.
References
Ando M (2004) A pilot study of life review interview for cancer patients. Jpn J Counseling Sci (in Japanese) 37:221–231
Ando M, Tsuda A, Moorey S (2006) A preliminary study of life review therapy for terminal cancer patients. Psychol Rep 98:339–346
Buechel H (1986) Reminiscence: a review and prospectus. Phys Occup Ther Geriatr 5:25–37
Butler RN (1974) Successful aging and the role of the life review. J Am Geriatr Soc 22:529–535
Chochinov HM, Hack T, Hassard T et al (2005) Dignity therapy: a novel psychotherapeutic intervention for patients near the end of life. J Clin Oncol 23:5520–5525
Fukui S, Kugaya A, Okamura H, Kamiya M et al (2000) A psychosocial group intervention for Japanese women with primary breast carcinoma. Cancer 89:1026–1036
Greer S, Moorey S (1997) Adjuvant psychological therapy for cancer patients. Palliat Med 11:240–244
Haight BK (1988) The therapeutic role of a structured life review process in homebound elderly subjects. J Gerontol 43:40–44
Haight B, Bahr RT (1984) The therapeutic role of the life review in the elderly. Academic Psychology Bulletin: 6, 3. Michigan Psychological Association, Detroit
Haight B, Coleman PG, Lord K (1995) The linchpins of a successful life review: structure, evaluation, and individuality. In: Haight BK, Webster JD (eds) The art and science of reminiscing: theory, research, methods and applications. Taylor & Francis, Bristol, PA, pp 179–192
Haight B, Michel Y, Hendrix S (1998) Life review: preventing despair in newly relocated nursing home residents: short-and long-term effects. Int J Aging Hum Dev 47:1142–1190
Haight B, Michel Y, Hendrix S (2000) The extended effects of the life review in nursing home residents. Int J Aging Hum Dev 50:151–168
Ishikawa K (2000) Spiritual QOL (in Japanese). Palliat Med 2:173–181
Japan Electronic Company (2003) Word Miner, version 1.1, Tokyo
Jones ED, Beck-Little R (2002) The use of reminiscence therapy for the treatment of depression in rural-dwelling older adults. Issues Ment Health Nurs 23:279–290
Kawa M, Kayama M, Maeyama E et al (2003) Distress of inpatients with terminal cancer in Japanese palliative care units: from the view point of spirituality. Support Care Cancer 11:481–490
McMahon A, Rhudick PJ (1964) Reminiscing: adaptational significance in the aged. Arch Gen Psychiatry 10:292–298
Moorey S, Greer S, Watson M et al (1994) Adjuvant psychological therapy for patients with cancer: outcome at one year. Psychooncology 3:39–46
Morita T, Tei Y, Inoue S et al (2001) Systematic literature review: care for spiritual and existential suffering of terminally ill cancer patients. Palliat Med 3:444–456
Morohoshi M, Nasukawa T, Nagano T (1999) An application of text mining technology to call-takers’ report. ISM symposium on data mining and knowledge discovery in data science, pp 127–136
Pickrel J (1989) Tell me your story: using life review in counseling the terminally ill. Death Stud 13:127–135
Wegberg BV, Bacchi M, Heusser P et al (1998) The cognitive-spiritual dimension-an important addition to the assessment of quality of life: validation of a questionnaire (SELT-M) in patients with advanced cancer. Ann Oncol 9:1091–1096
Wholihan D (1992) The value of reminiscence in hospice care. Am J Hospice Palliat Care 9:33–35
Wong PT, Watt LM (1991) What types of reminiscence are associated with successful aging? Psychol Aging 6:272–279
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ando, M., Tsuda, A. & Morita, T. Life review interviews on the spiritual well-being of terminally ill cancer patients. Support Care Cancer 15, 225–231 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-006-0121-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-006-0121-y