2026-05-25T15:07:53Z https://www.peertechzpublications.org/oai-pmh

oai:www.peertechzpublications.org:10.17352/2455-5460.000020 2017-08-28 PTZ.ADA:VOL3

Is genetic counseling for cancer predisposition always associated with distress? A pre-post intervention study to assess probands’ pre-and post-counseling level of anxiety and satisfaction Simona Di Lascio Elena Scaffi di Vincenzo Bagnardi Monica Taborelli Gabriella Bianchi Micheli Piercarlo Saletti Cinzia Cafaro-Greco Davide DisalvatoreOlivia Pagani<p>Genetic&nbsp; counseling&nbsp; for&nbsp; cancer&nbsp; predisposition&nbsp; is&nbsp; associated&nbsp; with&nbsp; a&nbsp; potentially&nbsp; underestimated emotional impact. The Genetic Counseling Service of the Institute of Oncology of Southern Switzerland evaluated the degree of anxiety before and after counseling and its correlation with the level of satisfaction of counselees.</p><p>The STAI (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) questionnaire was submitted to 80 counselees to measure trait&nbsp; (constitutive)&nbsp; and&nbsp; state&nbsp; (contingent)&nbsp; anxiety.&nbsp; It&nbsp; was&nbsp; submitted&nbsp; before&nbsp; and&nbsp; at&nbsp; the&nbsp; end&nbsp; of&nbsp; the first interview.&nbsp; A&nbsp; specific&nbsp; questionnaire&nbsp; named&nbsp; genetic&nbsp; counseling&nbsp; satisfaction&nbsp; (GCS),&nbsp; was&nbsp; developed&nbsp; to evaluate&nbsp; the&nbsp; quality&nbsp; of&nbsp; information,&nbsp; submitted&nbsp; to&nbsp; counselees&nbsp; at&nbsp; the&nbsp; end&nbsp; of&nbsp; the first&nbsp; meeting.&nbsp; The&nbsp; mean state and trait anxiety levels before the interview were respectively 41.4 and 40.7. The mean decrease after the interview was 4.3 for state anxiety (p&lt;0.0001) and 1.2 (p=0.0054) for trait anxiety. The GCS showed that&nbsp; most&nbsp; counselees&nbsp; appreciated&nbsp; the&nbsp; clarity&nbsp; of&nbsp; information&nbsp; (85%)&nbsp; and&nbsp; the&nbsp; simple&nbsp; and&nbsp; understandable terminology used during counseling (88%). Higher levels of satisfaction were associated with higher level of state anxiety reduction (ρ=-0.23, p=0.03). <br></p><p>Genetic&nbsp; counseling&nbsp; slightly&nbsp; impacts&nbsp; trait&nbsp; anxiety&nbsp; but&nbsp; results&nbsp; in&nbsp; an&nbsp; important&nbsp; reduction&nbsp; in&nbsp; state anxiety.&nbsp; The&nbsp; satisfaction&nbsp; from&nbsp; the&nbsp; interview&nbsp; influences&nbsp; the&nbsp; reduction&nbsp; of&nbsp; state&nbsp; anxiety&nbsp; associated&nbsp; with genetic counseling for cancer predisposition</p> Archives of Depression and Anxiety - Peertechz Publications 2017-08-28 Research Article https://doi.org/10.17352/2455-5460.000020 en Copyright © Simona Di Lascio et al.