Social support helps ease pain in breast cancer patients

Los Angeles: New research conducted by an assisted care centre based in the US shows that breast cancer patients who have the support of friends and family can manage pain and other symptoms better.

Breast cancer patients who say they have people with whom they have a good time, or have "positive social interactions" with, are better able to deal with pain and other physical symptoms, according to a new Kaiser Permanente study published Monday in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment. "This study provides research-based evidence that social support helps relieve physical symptoms," said lead author Candyce H. Kroenke, staff scientist with the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research. "Social support mechanisms matter in terms of physical outcomes," she said. The study, among the first to examine exactly how social relationships influence quality of life in breast cancer patients, also found that tangible support (such as help with household tasks and errands) was most useful to those with late-stage cancer, reports Science Daily. IANS