Ns. Nurul Huda S.Kep., M.Kep, Sp Kep MB

Active religious practice is central to the lives of Muslims. Few studies have
examined how religious engagement by Muslims who are coping with cancer affects their
psychological health during treatment. Objective: To determine how and the extent to which religion and spirituality are employed as coping mechanisms by Muslims through a literature review. Method: The electronic Medline, Cinahl, Google Scholar, and PubMed databases were used to identify relevant articles. Grey literature, including websites, was also looked over. Studies including patients with cancer of all types and stages were included. Results: Eight articles were included in the review. Key topics of interest were how the characteristics of Muslim religiosity and spirituality are involved in coping with cancer, including whether further how they enable a Muslim to give meaning to cancer, how cancer affects the religious beliefs of Muslim patients with cancer, and whether religion influences treatment considerations. Conclusions: Religion and
spirituality are crucial for Muslim patients to find meaning in cancer, and both are used as primary means of coping. Thus, nurses must be aware of and sensitive to the importance of religion in caring for such patients

 

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Diagnosing advanced cancer and the complex treatment it requires is stressful and affects all domains of a patient’s life including mental aspects. Failure to acknowledge such emotional problems early on may greatly increase the severity of patients’ cancer symptoms, and negatively impact their wellbeing, quality of life (QOL), and the oncological process itself. Coping is considered the intermediate process between stress onset and health outcomes in patients with advanced cancer. In patients with advanced cancer, the use of certain coping strategies is associated with outcomes including QOL, symptoms of depression, and anxiety. Therefore, coping is critical in determining whether a stressful event results in adaptive or maladaptive outcomes. However, the process of coping across distress trajectories among advanced cancer patients is dynamic. Hence, it is important to identify pathways by which advanced cancer patients create and maintain appropriate coping that ease emotional disorders associated with illnesses trajectories to better regain wellbeing.

Download File Abstract dissertation Coping as a mediator among advanced cancer patients