The study was conducted on the basis of the Department of Palliative Medicine of the Kiev City Oncology Hospital from August 2008 to September 2009.The aim of the study was to identify the psychoemotional condition of women in the terminal stage of cancer and identify key factors that will influence the effectiveness of coping with the stressful situation.

Assessment tools: surveillance, clinical and diagnostic interview, objective psychometric scales and test methods to identify the studied trait. The data were subjected to quantitative analysis with subsequent qualitative interpretation and meaningful generalization.

It was examined 193 women with cancer diagnosed in the terminal stage of disease. For all patients were characterized by an aesthetic syndrome combined with depressed (34%), anxiety (47%), less hypochondriac (11%) manifestations of depending on personality traits and physical condition. We have identified the following factors that affect the effectiveness of coping with stress, the introduced disease: the ability to control the physical symptoms, especially pain, individual-typological personality characteristics of patients, on the presence of emotional supported by the family.

Coping behaviour was better in families of women, which practiced open communication about the illness, maintains the atmosphere of openness, the patient was actively involved in issues concerning the tactics of treatment, symptoms to monitor. Thus, family psychological counselling must be included in the program to help women with cancer in terminal stages of disease.