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Trajectories of Posttraumatic Growth and Associated Characteristics in Women with Breast Cancer

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Annals of Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

Background

Cancer survivors may experience posttraumatic growth (PTG), positive psychological changes resulting from highly stressful events; however, the longitudinal course of PTG is poorly understood.

Purpose

The purpose of the present study was to determine trajectories of PTG in breast cancer survivors and associated characteristics.

Methods

Women (N = 653) participating in a longitudinal observational study completed questionnaires within 8 months of breast cancer diagnosis and 6, 12, and 18 months later. Group-based modeling identified PTG trajectories. Chi-square tests and ANOVA detected group differences in demographic, medical, and psychosocial variables.

Results

Six trajectory groups emerged. Three were stable at different levels of PTG, two increased modestly, and one increased substantially over time. Trajectory groups differed by age, race, receipt of chemotherapy, illness intrusiveness, depressive symptoms, active-adaptive coping, and social support.

Conclusions

This first examination of PTG trajectories in US cancer survivors elucidates heterogeneity in longitudinal patterns of PTG. Future research should determine whether other samples exhibit similar trajectories and whether various PTG trajectories predict mental and physical health outcomes.

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Funding

Funding for this project was provided by grants from the National Cancer Institute (R03CA150593-01A1, R25 CA122061, P30 CA012197), the National Institutes of Health Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) Scholar Program (2K12HD043483-11), and the Department of Defense (Grant # DAMD17-01-1-0447). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health or the Department of Defense.

Authors’ Statement of Conflict of Interest and Adherence to Ethical Standards

Suzanne C. Danhauer, Greg Russell, L. Douglas Case, Stephanie J. Sohl, Richard G. Tedeschi, Elizabeth L. Addington, Kelli Triplett, Kimberly J. Van Zee, Elizabeth Z. Naftalis, Beverly Levine, and Nancy E. Avis declare that they have no conflict of interest. All procedures, including the informed consent process, were conducted in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social Sciences and Health Policy, Division of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, 27157-1063, USA

    Suzanne C. Danhauer Ph.D, Stephanie J. Sohl PhD, Elizabeth L. Addington BA, Kelli Triplett PhD, Beverly Levine PhD & Nancy E. Avis PhD

  2. Department of Biostatistical Sciences, Division of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, 27157-1063, USA

    Greg Russell MS & L. Douglas Case PhD

  3. Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Stephanie J. Sohl PhD

  4. University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA

    Richard G. Tedeschi PhD, Elizabeth L. Addington BA & Kelli Triplett PhD

  5. Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA

    Kimberly J. Van Zee MD

  6. Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA

    Elizabeth Z. Naftalis MD

Authors
  1. Suzanne C. Danhauer Ph.D
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Suzanne C. Danhauer Ph.D.

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Danhauer, S.C., Russell, G., Case, L.D. et al. Trajectories of Posttraumatic Growth and Associated Characteristics in Women with Breast Cancer. ann. behav. med. 49, 650–659 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-015-9696-1

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