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Emotional processing during psychotherapy among women newly diagnosed with a gynecological cancer

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 December 2016

Sharon L. Manne ,
Shannon Myers-Virtue ,
Katie Darabos ,
Melissa Ozga ,
Carolyn Heckman ,
David Kissane  and
David Rotter
Sharon L. Manne*
Affiliation:
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Shannon Myers-Virtue
Affiliation:
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Katie Darabos
Affiliation:
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Melissa Ozga
Affiliation:
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York
Carolyn Heckman
Affiliation:
Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
David Kissane
Affiliation:
Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
David Rotter
Affiliation:
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Sharon Manne, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, 195 Little Albany Street, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903. E-mail: sharon.manne@rutgers.edu.
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Abstract

Objective:

Our aim was to compare changes in emotional processing by women newly diagnosed with gynecological cancer enrolled in either a coping and communication skills intervention (CCI) or a supportive counseling (SC) intervention. We examined the association between in-session emotional processing and patient-rated therapeutic progress.

Method:

Three therapy sessions with 201 patients were rated for the depth of emotional processing (peak and mode) during emotion episodes (EEs) using the Experiencing Rating Scale (EXP). Participants completed measures of dispositional emotional expressivity, depressive symptoms, and cancer-related distress before treatment began, as well as ratings of perceived progress in therapy after each session.

Results:

Peak EXP ratings averaged between 2.7 and 3.1, indicating that women discussed events, their emotional reactions, and their private experiences in sessions. A small proportion of patients had high levels of processing, indicating deeper exploration of the meaning of their feelings and experiences. Women in SC were able to achieve a higher level of emotional processing during the middle and later sessions, and during cancer-related EEs in the later session. However, emotional processing was not significantly associated with a patient's perceived therapeutic progress with SC. In the CCI group, higher levels of emotional processing were associated with greater session progress, suggesting that it may play an important role in patient-rated treatment outcomes.

Significance of results:

Newly diagnosed gynecological cancer patients are able to attend to their emotions and personal experiences, particularly when discussing cancer-related issues during both short-term SC and prescriptive coping skills interventions.

Keywords

Emotional processingGynecological cancerPsychotherapy
Type
Original Articles
Information
Palliative & Supportive Care , Volume 15 , Issue 4 , August 2017 , pp. 405 - 416
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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