Introduction
Communication and information have recently been applauded for their role in assisting patients to cope with cancer in most parts of the world. Unlike other diseases, cancer diagnosis can trigger a wide range of reactions including but not limited to stress, uncertainty and fear, whose impact can be regulated by use of information.
It has been found out that most cancer patients are usually eager to access information about their illness (Longo et al., 2009). However, this eagerness varies widely and its degree may fluctuate during different stages of cancer development.
This assessment paper discusses the concept of seeking health information and breast cancer diagnosis. To achieve this task, the paper will adopt a theory critique and extension format by reviewing contemporary research on theories related to communication technologies. It further draws a comparison between face-to-face and online methods of seeking cancer information.
Emotional support theory
There is no doubt that being diagnosed with breast cancer has a significant impact regardless of whether it is at an early stage or advanced. However, recent research indicates that emotional support given to breast cancer women has become a successful tool in adding value and hope to the lives of individuals.
Emotional support compliments breast cancer treatment, giving patients the ability to overcome depression and attain a stable mental health after cancer diagnosis (Carstensen, 1992). Importantly, every cancer patient requires emotional support since emotional trauma is regarded to be more fatal than breast cancer itself.
Patients who suffer emotional imbalance usually find it hard to cope with the reality of the illness and may develop other health complications. This implies that a healing environment plays a significant role in helping patients to recover and maintain a stable mental status (Ecoggins, 2011).
Under normal circumstances, a woman will always experience tremendous fear when she is diagnosed to have breast cancer. Many doctors affirm this feeling of fear is common even in cases where the disease is in its initial stages. As a result, the impact of the fear depends on the response of those people around, forming her environment (Carstensen, 1992).
In other cases, women diagnosed with cancer may feel like social misfits in the society, depending on how the society and people around view the illness. If viewed from a negative perspective that is discriminative, breast cancer patients feel isolated and doomed.
Consequently, these patients have a tendency of experiencing high level of anxiety, depression and hopelessness in cases where caregivers are insensitive to their emotional needs. Even though medical treatment of cancer is essential, a complimentary healing approach and a supportive environment are necessary for positive recovery effects (Kim et al., 2010).
Like in any other health complication, breast cancer patients require emotional fitness from the time they learn that they are suffering from the disease. When handled carelessly, breast cancer diagnosis may breed terror in the heart of a patient, a condition which may increase stress level among patients.
It is therefore recommended that depression reduction techniques should be employed immediately after diagnosis to minimize cases of emotional disturbance (Carstensen, 1992). By maintaining a relaxed mind, cancer patients can experience good body conditions and processes that are usually missing when the situation is dominated by stress.
To prove that emotional support is paramount, several researchers have found out that breast cancer patients who receive emotional support are likely to live longer compared to those are neglected by the society (Leydon et al., 2000).
The greatest challenge is therefore with caregivers and close family members who spend a lot of time with breast cancer patients. Their reaction towards cancer diagnosis can either help the patient or worsen the situation, when they become a major source of emotional disturbance.
As mentioned above, emotional support is important immediately after diagnosis to allow the patient to have a positive attitude towards life and keep stress-related complications at bay. Emotional support is also concerned with the kind of information given to patients and how the information is conveyed.
Proper use of communication techniques is therefore compulsory for medical practitioners immediately after breast cancer diagnosis (Leydon et al., 2000). This is crucial in determining the patient’s response towards the situation and her ability to respond to medication appropriately.
Diagnostic information can also affect family members in the manner in which they perceive the patient and the ability to see her as a normal member of the society.
Emotional support also allows cancer patients to seek medication and health information from correct sources that are well recognized early enough before the disease advances to severe levels. During that time, such information can be helpful or detrimental depending on its authenticity and accuracy (Leydon et al., 2000).
Like other patients suffering from different illnesses, breast cancer patients need information about correct dieting, medication, exercise and emotional stability. Availability of this information is therefore important in ensuring that the patient does what has been recommended by the doctor in order to manage the situation without serious complications associated with delivery of wrong information to patients.
Uncertainty management
William B. Gudykunst is credited for having designed the uncertainty management theory, as he struggled to define the key elements of effective communication. Although the theory is highly associated with him, it is important to mention that existing work at the moment significantly helped Gudykunst in developing his work, which has become highly recognized around the globe.
For instance, Berger’s research of 1974 played a major role in laying the foundation for Gudykunst’s discoveries and advancements. Nevertheless, the theory has undergone a series of transformations in order to incorporate new ideas in an ever-changing world (Hovden, 2004).
In the understanding of this theory and how it relates to seeking of breast cancer information, it is worth noting that the theory mainly focuses on experiences between cultural in-groups and a strange person or a group of people. The main intention of Gudykunst was to apply it in cases where existing differences among people triggered fears and doubts.
Additionally, Gudykunst assumed that an intercultural encounter will always expose at least one person to being a stranger (Griffin, n.d.). As a result, strangers are at the risk of experiencing anxiety and uncertainty, a condition, which makes them to feel insecure and may not know how to behave.
Despite the fact that in-group members and strangers may experience a certain degree of uncertainty and anxiety in an interpersonal environment, when this encounter takes place among people from diverse cultures, strangers are always aware of the existing differences in culture. Since strangers are more sensitive, they can predict the effect of cultural identity on the general behavior of people within the society.
Effective communication
According to Gudykunst, effective communication can be described as the process through which people minimize misunderstandings. Furthermore, effective communication can only be achieved if the person interpreting the information being passed across is able to attach a meaning to the message that is similar to what was intended by the person conveying the message (Longo et al., 2009).
On the other hand, experts define effective communication in terms of accuracy, mutual understanding and fidelity.
It therefore implies that effective communication between two people would not necessarily require them to be in close proximity, share attitudes or even speak fluently, even though these attributes are highly welcome. The most important thing is to accurately predict and explain each other’s behavior in order to tie the actions into the discussion (Kim et al., 2010).
Information seeking online and face-to-face
Physicians have been considered as the main source of reliable information about cancer in terms of diagnosis and treatment. However, due to the fact that some of the patients get overwhelmed by diagnosis, doctors believe that patients can have an alternative source of cancer information.
Additionally, this has been necessitated by the desire among most breast cancer patients and the general public to know more about this scourge (Fogel et al., 2002). As a result, the use of the internet as a source of cancer information has become common in recent years. Through this technology, patients can search relevant information about diagnosis, treatment, drugs and causes of the disease at the click of the mouse.
According to some, the internet provides detailed information that gives them a collaborative role with their doctors when managing the disease. While this approach is taking root in the society, it is important to compare the two ways of sourcing information with regard to their benefits and challenges (Fogel et al., 2002).
Face-to-face approach is a traditional and widely acceptable way of sourcing information about cancer. Unlike any other method, it allows one-on-one interaction between physicians and patients or those seeking information. This interaction has a wide range of advantages compared to the online approach. First, patients develop a relationship with their respective doctors (Fogel et al., 2002).
This linkage allows free sharing of information for the doctor to have an exact understanding of the situation. It implies that physicians are able to offer assistance depending on individual cases, unlike online sources, which are inclined towards general cases of breast cancer. Concerns from patients are also attended to instantly through sessions of questions and answers.
With regard to emotional needs, face-to-face method of seeking breast cancer information allows patients to be prepared for diagnosis and the implication of the outcome. Through counseling and sharing of information, doubts among patients are cleared, giving them a clear conscience about the disease (Gustafson, 2001).
This preparedness allows them to deal with fear, anxiety and uncertainty, which immensely overwhelm online patients. This is crucial since emotional stability is essential in the management of breast cancer among women. Due to lack of enough emotional support from online sources, those who visit online sites may end up being stressed and overwhelmed with anxiety (Balka, 2010).
The flip side of face-to-face method is that it is costly. Patients have to meet consultation fees for doctors. Accessibility to health centers may also be a challenge, forcing patients to travel long distances. Lastly, it eliminates privacy of the patient, as consultation involves physical interaction (Gustafson, 2001).
Proponents of online seeking of information argue that it is cheap and convenient for most people. With the wide spread use of the internet, patients can access this information anytime on their PCs, laptops or web-enabled mobile phones. Similarly, information can be accessed anytime, day or night, unlike physicians who have specific consultation days and hours. It is also cheap (Gustafson, 2001).
The only charge attached to find relevant information is the internet connectivity fee, which is much cheaper compared to consultation fee for physicians. Since everything is online, it promotes privacy of patients. It also offers varied sources, including private doctors, clinics and National Cancer Institute. As a result, patients are able to compare information and make informed decisions.
Even though the use of the internet is becoming a common method of seeking breast cancer information, it has a host of disadvantages. First, online information lacks monitoring. This means that patients are likely to feed on unreliable information with anonymous authors, which can be detrimental if it is misleading (Gustafson, 2001).
Additionally, the presence of various sources may cause confusion among patients, since some of the information could be contradictory. Due to generalization of online information, patients do not have access to customized services (Balka, 2010).
In relation to the emotional and uncertainty management theory, the use of internet as a source of information for cancer exposes patients to an array of disadvantages. Online communication eliminates physical interaction with the doctor. As a result, customized cancer information cannot easily be sourced (Fogel et al., 2002). Additionally, patients lack mental preparedness since this technology delinks patients from doctors.
The main challenge posed by this is the fact that patients may get overwhelmed with stress and anxiety caused by insufficient information (Balka, 2010). This comparison exposes the weaknesses and strengths of each method employed by patients in seeking information. In applying the emotional theory face-to-face approach is more favorable compared to online sourcing of cancer information (Smith-Mclallen et al., 2011).
Theory critique
The two theories above, emotional support theory and uncertainty management theory are quite essential in addressing the issue of breast cancer in the world today. No one can deny that emotional stability, which emanates from emotional support, is paramount in managing cancer and other related illnesses (Rutten et al., 2005).
When one is diagnosed with breast cancer, family members, caregivers, doctors and the entire society is usually called upon to offer relevant assistance. Many patients who receive emotional support from these groups of people demonstrate high capability of managing the disease as compared to those abandoned by family members and close friends.
Though emotional support, it is important in minimizing stress, fear and other forms of emotional imbalance. It is equally significant to underscore the role of information in handling breast cancer patients immediately after diagnosis (Hovden, 2004).
Information allows the patient to draw a line between fact and fiction, by engaging qualified doctors and caregivers. In this case, the power of valid information would go a long way in benefiting a patient even when there is nobody to offer emotional support.
Similarly, effective communication ensures that the patient makes informed decisions, supported by medical authority as long as the message was communicated effectively. In such a case, errors emanating from wrong information from society members would be minimized (Hovden, 2004). Though emotional support is healthy, it may lose meaning especially in cases where it is overdone.
Patients who find themselves in these situations may have very stable emotional health but low recovery and response to medication. The implication of this is that the emotional support theory model denies patients to make informed decisions based on proper medical information. As a result, they become dependent on people around them without exploring independent and informed decisions (Smith-Mclallen et al., 2011).
Extension of theories
Although every disease has its risks and impact on patients and the general public, cancer presents unique scenarios based on medication challenges and the ability of patients to respond to medication.
As a result, when one is diagnosed to be suffering from breast cancer, the information can ruin the rest of an individual’s life (Carstensen, 1992) Nevertheless, this is based on the how the information is communicated and the emotional support given by society, including family members, caregivers and specialized doctors.
Based on the new page of life that a cancer patient is likely to open, most of them encounter the need for specialized information in order to handle the situation. In general, most patients look for information concerning the disease and treatment (Fogel et al., 2002).
Another important fact to note in addressing the issue of seeking cancer-related information is that medical professionals are given the highest priority as trusted sources of information about breast cancer.
However, other sources of information may be considered from family members, friends and cancer patients. The disadvantage of sourcing information from other people is that the validity of what they consider to be facts about breast cancer might not be verified (Griffin, n.d.).
Conclusion
From the above assessment, it is evident that correct information is a very important tool when handling breast cancer. However, the method employed in disseminating or sourcing this information is equally important (Rutten et al., 2005).
Face-to-face method and the use of the internet are common even though internet usage is gaining popularity due to advancement in technology. Importantly, face-to-face method promotes emotional stability due to physical and customized interaction between patients and physicians.
References
Balka, E. (2010). Situating Internet Use: Information-Seeking Among Young Women with Breast Cancer. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 15 (3), 389–411.
Ecoggins. (2011). Anxiety Uncertainty Management Theory and the Problem of Cross-cultural Communications in Global Organizations. HubPages. Web.
Fogel et al. (2002).Use of the Internet by Women with Breast Cancer. J Med Internet, 4 (2), 9.
Griffin, E. (n.d.). Anxiety/Uncertainty Management Theory of William Gudykunst. McGraw-Hill. Web.
Gustafson, D. (2001). Effect of Computer Support on Younger Women with Breast Cancer. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 16 (7), 435–445.
Hovden, J. (2004). Risk and Uncertainty Management Strategies. Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Web.
Kim et al. (2010). The Roles of Social Support and Coping Strategies in Predicting Breast Cancer Patients’ Emotional Well-being Testing Mediation and Moderation Models. J Health Psychology, 15 (4), 543–552.
Leydon et al. (2000). Cancer patients’ information needs and information seeking behavior: in depth interview study. British Medical Journal, 320, 1-3.
Longo et al. (2009). Understanding breast-cancer patients’ perceptions: Health information-seeking behavior and passive information receipt. Journal of Communication in Healthcare, 2 (2), 184-206.
Carstensen, L. (1992). Social and Emotional Patterns in Adulthood: Support for Socioemotional Selectivity Theory. Psychology and Ageing, 7 (3), 331-338.
Rutten et al. (2005). Information needs and sources of information among cancer patients: a systematic review of research (1980–2003). Patient Education and Counseling, 57, 250–261.
Smith-Mclallen et al. (2011). Psychosocial Determinants of Cancer-Related Information Seeking among Cancer Patients. J Health Psychology, 16 (2), 212–225.