Current research projects
as part of the Professorship of Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy with a focus on Transplantation Medicine and Oncology Prof. Dr. Tanja Zimmermann
Brief description of the research project:
The referral of psychologically distressed cancer patients to psycho-oncology in the inpatient setting is strongly influenced by interdisciplinary cooperation. A newly designed psycho-oncological training course for nursing staff is intended to increase the identification of psychologically distressed patients, increase their referral to psycho-oncology, reduce barriers and improve interdisciplinary exchange within the treatment team.
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Employees / doctoral students:
M.Sc. Psych. Viktoria Ginger and Dr. Lara Dreismann, M.Sc. Psych.
Research assistant:
Maria Jäntgen
Cooperation:
Leipzig University Hospital, Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Prof. Dr. Anja Mehnert.
University Hospital Dresden, University Cancer Center (UCC), Ms. Dipl.-Psych. Beate Hornemann.
Funding:
Funded by the German Cancer Aid. Duration: 01/2020 - 06/2023. by the German Cancer Aid. Duration: 01/2020 - 06/2023.
Study description:
Psychosocial screening serves as an orientation and prerequisite for access to psycho-oncological care and is usually carried out by medical ward staff. Consequently, patient-oriented access to psycho-oncology requires efficient interdisciplinary cooperation. However, despite the use of validated screening instruments, there are often divergent assessments between the medical, nursing and psycho-oncological teams with regard to psychological stress and the need for psycho-oncological care. This means that not only the use of standardized screening instruments, but also personnel qualification and interdisciplinary cooperation are important influencing factors in the identification of psychologically distressed persons and their referral to psycho-oncology.
In this multicentre study "OptiScreen", a newly designed psycho-oncological training course for nursing staff is intended to professionalize the nursing profession in psycho-oncology, break down barriers, improve interdisciplinary exchange and optimize the psycho-oncological care algorithm.
In addition to the primary data from the psycho-oncological screenings and validated self-assessment instruments on psychological stress, coping with illness, quality of life and treatment satisfaction, the information and support needs, practicability, referral to and utilization of psycho-oncological care are also to be surveyed.
The aim is to improve the identification of patients with psychological stress and in need of care and to increase the referral of these people to psycho-oncology. "OptiScreen" aims to generate a "best practice model" in the psycho-oncological screening process through to intervention.
Project phase:
The study is currently in the final phase.
Further information:
Here you can find the flyer and further information for your patients.
Further information on the study can be found here.
Contact details:
Viktoria Ginger, M. Sc. Psych.
E-mail: Ginger.Viktoria@mh-hannover.de
Tel: +49 511 532 - 6689
Dr. Lara Dreismann, M. Sc. Psych.
E-mail: Dreismann.Lara@mh-hannover.de
Tel: +49 511 532 - 8198
Brief description of the research project:
Determination of demand, need and utilization of psycho-oncological care to improve psycho-oncological support services.
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Employees / doctoral students:
M. Sc. Psych. Hannah Reuter (on parental leave)
Viola Krüger
Lena Jungk
Lina Hudecek
Cooperation:
Leipzig University Hospital, Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology,
Prof. Dr. Anja Mehnert (PI).
Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCCC), Dr. Ute Goerling.
Funding:
Funded by the German Cancer Aid. Duration: 01/2020 - 12/2023.
Study description:
In view of the growing number of cancer patients and limited financial and human resources, the needs-based planning of psycho-oncological care is becoming increasingly important. This makes an investigation of the need for care just as necessary as a targeted analysis of possible influencing factors and barriers to utilization.
To date, however, the correlations between (1) the subjective need for support, (2) the objective need and (3) the utilization of psycho-oncological care have not been validly investigated. Furthermore, the relationship to socioeconomic aspects, in particular social class, has not been adequately recorded.
In our longitudinal multicenter study, oncology patients and their relatives are examined longitudinally (at 4 measurement points: 4 weeks after initial diagnosis (T1), 6 months after T1, 12 months after T1 and 18 months after T1). The subjective need for support of the patients is assessed, the objective need for support (expert assessment of a mental disorder) is evaluated and the utilization of support services is tracked. Furthermore, moderating factors such as social class and the influence of dyadic coping within a partnership as well as other disruptive and facilitating factors are to be identified and investigated.
The aim is to determine the needs, requirements and utilization of psycho-oncological care in order to improve the current psycho-oncological support situation.
Project phase:
The study is currently in its final phase.
Further information:
Here you can find the flyer and further information for your patients.
Further information on the study can be found here.
Contact details:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
E-Mail: zimmermann.tanja@mh-hannover.de
Lena Jungk
E-Mail: Jungk.lena@mh-hannover.de
Project management:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Study staff/doctoral students:
cand. med. Amelie Röhrig, cand. med. Lisa Weber
Cooperation:
In cooperation with the Round Table Psychooncology Hannover.
Funding:
Home remedies.
Brief description of the research project:
The high prevalence of cancer, the psychological comorbidities and the increasing survival rates represent a growing challenge for psychological and medical psychotherapists in the psycho-oncological care of cancer patients in both outpatient and inpatient settings.
The development of the National Cancer Plan and the S-3 guideline "Psycho-oncological diagnosis, counselling and treatment of adult cancer patients" aim to minimize care deficits in outpatient care. Although a third of cancer patients have mental disorders due to their illness, only a small proportion receive outpatient psychotherapeutic treatment.
The length of hospital stays for cancer patients is becoming shorter and shorter, meaning that an increasing number are dependent on psycho-oncological support outside of hospital. Not only the cancer patients themselves, but also their relatives need support. Psychosocial support helps to reduce distress and improve quality of life. In addition, anxiety and depression symptoms in cancer patients can be reduced through therapy. However, finding an outpatient psychotherapy place is a major challenge for cancer patients or their relatives. Waiting times are generally very long - with large regional differences. In addition, cancer patients are often turned away by psychotherapists in private practice due to their oncological diagnosis or are unable to bridge the long waiting times. Experts in an inpatient context or physicians in private practice are also rarely able to refer their patients to outpatient psychotherapists.
This study therefore records psycho-oncological/psychotherapeutic care in the outpatient sector in Lower Saxony in order to make care more transparent, to provide patients and experts with contact points for outpatient psycho-oncological/psychotherapeutic care and to identify other factors in the requirements, hurdles and burdens. Cancer patients should be given the opportunity to find out about outpatient psycho-oncological services in order to improve access to such services. On the other hand, recommendations for improving outpatient psycho-oncological care structures are to be made based on the identified factors.
The study asks for contact details and services offered by psychotherapists already working in psycho-oncology in order to improve access to information for patients. This information is published on the website www.psychoonkologie-niedersachsen.de
Project phase:
The project is currently in the 2nd wave of data collection.
Contact details:
Prof'in Dr. Tanja Zimmermann
E-mail: Zimmermann.Tanja@mh-hannover.de
Brief description of the research project:
The aim of the study is to investigate whether psychological interventions, including positive expectation generation prior to aortocoronary bypass surgery, can help to improve the course of recovery and the long-term psychological and physical outcomes of patients who have undergone surgery.
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Collaborators / doctoral students:
Viola Krüger
Cooperation:
University of Marburg, Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Prof. Dr. Winfried Rief (PI).
Other participating study locations: University of Giessen, Greifswald, Hamburg, Berlin (DHZB), Cologne and Munich (DHM/MRI TU).
Funding:
Funded by the German Research Foundation. Duration: 08/2019 - 08/2023.
Study description:
The aim of the "PSY-HEART II" study is to investigate whether preoperative psychological interventions are able to significantly improve long-term outcomes after aortocoronary bypass surgery with or without heart valve replacement compared to standard medical treatment.
In this study, patients scheduled for elective cardiac surgery will be randomized to one of three possible conditions: Either patients receive a psychological preoperative intervention to optimize expectations (EXPECT), a psychological control intervention that focuses on emotional support but does not focus on expectations (SUPPORT), or they receive only standard medical treatment without a psychological intervention (SOC). Both psychological interventions consist of two face-to-face contacts (50 min each) and two telephone contacts (20 min each) during the week before the operation as well as a further booster telephone call six weeks after the operation and a final contact six months after the operation.
The primary outcome variable is the disease-related impairment of the patients six months after the operation (PDI). Secondary outcome variables are the physical or medical outcomes of the patients (pain, physical activity, rehospitalization, left ventricular ejection fraction, biological parameters and ability to work) as well as psychological parameters (expectations, subjective disease representations, attitudes towards medication, quality of life and experienced affects such as anxiety and depression, optimism, etc.).
In summary, the positive results of the monocentric preliminary study "PSY-HEART I" are to be verified in this multicentre, randomized, controlled, prospective study. In addition, the results will be generalized and implications for the healthcare system will be derived.
Project phase:
The study is currently in the final phase.
Hyperlinks:
Here you can find further information for your patients.
Contact details:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
E-Mail: zimmermann.tanja@mh-hannover.de
Viola Krüger
E-Mail: Krueger.viola@mh-hannover.d
Brief description of the research project:
Identification of psychosocial stress and influencing factors, predictors and specific risk groups. With the aim of identifying possible care deficits and developing care services.
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Research assistants/doctoral students:
M. Sc. Psych. Josefine Fischer-Jacobs
cand. med. Anna Maria Kastner
Cooperation:
BRCA-Netzwerk e.V., Andrea Hahne. Centers of the German Familial Breast and Ovarian Cancer Consortium, Coordinator: Prof. Dr. Rita Schmutzler.
Funding:
Funded by the KlinStrucMed program - doctoral college funded by the Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation. Duration: 07/2019 - 07/2020.
Study description:
People with a hereditary tumor predisposition syndrome have a significantly increased risk of developing specific tumors. The knowledge of this genetic disposition can represent a psychosocial burden for the person affected, but also for their relatives, which is associated with psychological distress.
As part of a Germany-wide, cross-sectional online survey, affected mutation carriers and relatives will be asked about their subjective experience of psychological distress via patient-reported outcomes and factors influencing psychological distress. N= 236 subjects will be included (N=118 mutation carriers and N=118 relatives). Psychological distress will be assessed using validated questionnaires in the area of post-traumatic stress (IES-R), the extent of depressive (PHQ-9) and anxious symptoms (GAD-7). In addition, validated questionnaires are used to record individual and family factors for which a correlation is assumed (progression anxiety; social support; quality of life; coping; family factors).
The aim of the study is to identify stress factors in mutation carriers and their relatives. In addition, predictors of psychological stress and specific risk groups are to be identified. This study can make an important contribution to the psychosocial stress of relatives in particular, as there has been little research on this topic to date. The results can help to identify care deficits and develop care services with the aim of improving the psychological burden and quality of life of those affected.
Project phase:
The study is currently in the recruitment phase.
Hyperlinks:
Here you will find the flyer and poster as well as further information for your patients and their relatives.
Contact details:
Anna Maria Kastner, cand. med.
E-mail: Kastner.Anna@mh-hannover.de
Phone: +49 511 532 - 8198
Brief description of the research project:
Analysis of whether and to what extent women with a hereditary tumor disposition syndrome need psychological and medical support, and which topics are of particular interest.
Project management:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Study staff/doctoral students:
M. Sc. Psych. Josefine Fischer-Jacobs
Cooperation:
Institute of Human Genetics, Hannover Medical School. Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Hannover Medical School.
Funding:
Home remedies.
Study description:
Women with a genetic mutation, e.g. in the BRCA1/2 gene, often experience increased psychological stress. This is reflected, for example, in uncertainty in dealing with the increased risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer, due to stressful experiences in dealing with cancer and deaths of relatives, as well as problems with Communications within the family. Mutation carriers show an increased level of distress after genetic testing. This distress also leads to an increased psychological stress experience in the long term, especially in women of a young age, with young children and with increased distress values after testing. The aim of this dissertation is to find out whether and to what extent women need psychological and medical support.
Using in-depth interviews and appropriate questionnaires, N=21 women were asked whether psychological support was desired and which topics were of particular interest. Initial analyses show that 7 out of 21 women have sought psychological support in the past due to the genetic mutation and its effects, while more than half of the women surveyed, 11 out of 21, would like psychological support at the present time. The main topics are Communications within the family (partner, children, relatives), fears about the future and decision-making processes (prophylactic surgery, intensified early detection programs) as well as dealing with genetic and family-related distress.
This study provides the first indications in German-speaking countries of the psychological and medical support needs of women with an increased genetic risk and which topics are relevant. In addition, it was possible to determine that family members have a special significance, as they themselves carry the hereditary tumor predisposition (parents, siblings, own children) or can be directly affected by the effects of the mutation (partner - child planning). However, to date there has been a lack of sufficient and comprehensive studies on this, which need to be considered and analyzed.
Project phase:
The project is currently being finalized.
Hyperlinks:
A further study called "GemeinsamGEN " was initiated in cooperation with the BRCA-Netzwerk e.V. - Hilfe bei familiären Krebserkrankungen. Here you can find the flyer.
Here you can find further information for mutation carriers and relatives.
Contact details:
Josefine Fischer-Jacobs, M. Sc. Psych.
E-mail: fischer.josefine@mh-hannover.de
Phone: +49 511 532 - 4608
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych. & Dr. André Karger (Düsseldorf)
Study staff/doctoral students:
cand. med. Bahar Nalbant, cand. B.Sc. Anna Landgraf
Cooperation:
The study is being conducted and financed by Hannover Medical School and Düsseldorf University Hospital. The cancer societies of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia have taken over the patronage.
Funding:
Home remedies.
Brief description of the research project:
This study examines the effects of cancer on the stability of a partnership in German-speaking countries by means of two online surveys of cancer patients and their relatives. To this end, we would like to survey both cancer patients and their relatives online. Participation in the survey takes approx. 10-15 minutes and the data will be stored anonymously and analyzed scientifically.
The following link will take you to the questionnaire for those affected:
https://ww2.unipark.de/uc/partnerschaft/
The following link will take you to the questionnaire for relatives: https://ww2.unipark.de/uc/partnerschaft_angehoerige
Project phase:
The project is currently in the 2nd wave of data collection.
Contact details:
Prof. Dr. Dr. Tanja Zimmermann
E-mail: Zimmermann.Tanja@mh-hannover.de
Project management:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Research assistants/doctoral students:
Cennet Uslu
Annkatrin Runde
Jana Friedhoff
Cooperation:
Rotary Club Verden.
Funding:
Rotary Club Verden.
Brief description of the research project:
Cancer not only affects the person with the disease, but also the family environment. Particularly in families with underage children, parental illness can have an impact on the psychological well-being of the children. In addition to changes in the family situation and routines, in many cases the illness also influences the parenting behavior of the parents. This can become either very rigid, rather neglectful or excessively spoiling and overprotective. This poses a risk to the child's further socio-emotional development and can lead to a long-term deterioration in the parent-child relationship. Especially in times of anxiety and increased stress due to cancer, a reliable parent-child relationship is very important. The planned randomized controlled study therefore focuses on improving the parent-child relationship and strengthening parenting skills by having mothers or fathers with cancer participate in the parent training Triple P Online. The aim of the study is to improve the parenting behavior of parents and reduce anxiety, depression and stress as well as improve quality of life. In addition, the children's problem behavior and well-being should also be positively influenced. The results can help to bring an important topic - parenting - into focus, including in clinical care, and thus contribute to a reduction in psychological stress for the entire family.
Project phase:
The project is currently in the planning phase.
Contact details:
Prof. Dr. Dr. Tanja Zimmermann
E-mail: Zimmermann.Tanja@mh-hannover.de
Project management:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Research assistants/doctoral students:
N.N.
Cooperation:
None.
Funding:
Home remedies.
Brief description of the research project:
The partnership-based support program "Side by side for parents of chronically ill children" is offered in cooperation with the Pediatric Oncology and Pediatric Cardiology departments of the MHH. The aim of the research project is to investigate the effectiveness of psychosocial intervention for parents of children with cancer and parents of children with heart disease.
The program to strengthen partnership support comprises five sessions (adapted form of the evaluated program "Side by side - a psycho-oncological treatment program for couples" according to Zimmermann & Heinrichs, 2008) and includes, among other things, exercises for partnership support. The program is carried out on a manual basis by trained trainers.
The parents receive a questionnaire package at various measurement points, which records the individual experience of stress (anxiety, depression and stress due to somatic complaints), the perceived individual quality of life, the need for support as well as the perceived social support and the dyadic and family level of functioning.
Project phase:
The project is currently in the evaluation phase.
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych. &
Prof. Dr. Christoph Bara (Transplantation and Artificial Heart Outpatient Clinic)
Study staff/doctoral students:
cand. med. Finja Jünemann, cand. med. Nina Waldenburger
Cooperation:
None.
Funding:
Funded by the KlinStrucMed program - doctoral college funded by the Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation. Duration: 07/2018 - 07/2019.
Brief description of the research project:
Due to the scarcity of resources caused by the organ shortage that has existed for years, waiting times for a donor heart are increasing significantly. VAD implantations can therefore be performed with different treatment goals such as "Bridge to Transplantation", "Destination Therapy" or "Bridge to Decision". The success of VAD therapy depends largely on postoperative management. Despite the frequent complications of device therapy and the currently indispensable external driveline, patients' quality of life initially improves after implantation, particularly due to the resumption of physical activity, less discomfort, shortness of breath and weakness, and the fact that survival has been ensured. In the further course, however, uncertainties can also arise, e.g. about the functioning of the VAD, which can bring the threat of death back to the fore, as well as the feeling of loss of autonomy due to the external presence and the dependence of life on a machine.
The mental state of all VAD patients is considered to be underestimated. This is surprising, as 15-36% of heart patients show depressive symptoms, 40% experience anxiety and 10-17% post-traumatic stress. It is important to note that mental disorders have a direct impact on morbidity and mortality in all chronic heart diseases. Patients appear to develop new anxieties and depression, particularly in the long-term course. In addition, there is less social reintegration, financial and social losses. All patients face the challenge of integrating a ventricular assist device into their body image. The extent of social support is also important here.
A stable mental state and corresponding resilience is also an important prerequisite for long-term therapeutic success after a heart transplant. In view of the shortage of organs, the identification of potential failures among bridge-to-transplant patients is therefore becoming increasingly important. It would be highly desirable to reflect this risk factor in the Cardiac Allocation Score (CAS) that is currently being developed.
The implantation of a VAD is a major challenge not only for patients but also for their relatives. Although there is increasing awareness of the importance of the role of family members in the adaptation of patients to cardiovascular disease, few studies focus on the emotional state of family members of VAD patients. Family members can support the process (e.g. through a positive family climate) as well as inhibit it, e.g. through a conflict-ridden social environment. Implantation is also a changed psychosocial situation for relatives. They feel restricted in their own quality of life, develop feelings of guilt, anxiety and depressive reactions. Although psychological stress is increasingly coming into focus as a complication, there have so far been very few studies investigating couples in which one partner has received a VAD implantation.
In a cross-sectional study of patients with mechanical ventricular assist devices (VADs) and their partners, the aim is to investigate dyadic coping via self-report and objective physiological parameters with regard to its relevance for psychological distress.
Project phase:
The project is currently in the evaluation phase.
Project management:
Prof. Dr. Frauke von Versen-Höynck (Clinical Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, MHH) &
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Study assistants/doctoral students:
Nadia Meyer, Lea Böhm, Nina Schirm
Cooperation:
None.
Funding:
Home remedies.
Brief description of the research project:
Family planning is an increasingly relevant topic for transplant patients. A significant proportion of patients are of childbearing age. As both their long-term prognosis and quality of life have improved considerably in recent decades, more and more people are considering starting or expanding a family after an organ transplant. However, there are a number of specific challenges to consider. To prevent transplant rejection, patients are dependent on lifelong immunosuppressants. However, these drugs are associated with significant long-term side effects, particularly for the cardiovascular system such as high blood pressure and diabetes mellitus, and also pose a challenge in terms of family planning, as their dosages have to be adjusted due to teratogenicity and fetotoxicity in some cases. Some preparations must not be given at all during pregnancy.
Fertility can be restricted by the underlying disease and make assisted reproduction necessary. Study results show that patients would like more comprehensive information on the subject after their transplant. Interdisciplinary care is recommended at the time of conception as well as during the entire pregnancy, and treating physicians must be made aware of this.
The objectives of this study are to use a questionnaire to determine the frequency of pregnancies and conceptions of transplant patients and their complications and to investigate the attitudes of the respondents to the subject of the desire to have children and family planning. Among other things, awareness of the need for contraception and the integrity of physician-patient communications as well as the perception of the risks of pregnancy after transplantation are to be recorded. If the survey takes place during a follow-up appointment, a short questionnaire will also be used to obtain an assessment from the attending physician and compare it with the information provided by the patient. Furthermore, we would like to record the characteristics of existing partnerships of transplanted patients. If available, a corresponding questionnaire should also be given to the partner, which on the one hand refers to the partnership as such and on the other hand addresses the partner's attitudes and thoughts on the subject of family planning and the desire to have children. The data collected for the transplanted study participants will be correlated with the current subjective mental and physical state of health and also differentiated according to gender, transplanted organ and other socio-demographic factors.
As part of a retrospective cohort study, we plan to survey patients of reproductive age (18 to 45 years, based on a woman's biological fertility) after an organ or stem cell transplant who either present at the MHH for follow-up care or become aware of our study via another channel, for example via social media or self-help networks.
Link to the survey: https://ww2.unipark.de/uc/familienplanungTX
Project phase:
The project is currently in the recruitment phase.
Project management:
Dr. med. Jens Harms (Klinikum Wolfsburg) & Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Study staff/doctoral students:
Benedikt Kunzmann
Cooperation:
None.
Funding:
Home remedies.
Brief description of the research project:
Surgery is inherently associated with a high potential for anxiety on the part of patients. This fear is caused by the loss of self-control, the fear of being controlled by others, the fear of pain, injuries and physical disfigurement as well as complications. The prevalence of anxiety and depression in patients with gastrointestinal tumors is considered high. As part of this study conducted at Wolfsburg Hospital, N = 100 patients undergoing visceral surgery were asked about their subjectively perceived anxiety and other variables relating to psychological stress during their inpatient stay at 4 measurement points: T1 initial contact, T2 pre-inpatient admission interview, T3 discharge interview, T4 at outpatient re-presentation 30 days after surgery. So far, data has been collected from N = 80 patients. The aim of the study is to closely record subjectively perceived anxiety in oncological visceral surgery patients during their inpatient stay in visceral surgery and to identify risk factors for increased anxiety. In the future, coping strategies to reduce patient anxiety will be developed on the basis of the study results.
Project phase:
The project is currently in the evaluation phase.
Project management:
Prof'in Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Research assistants/doctoral students:
Laura Franke, Daria Tkachenko, B.Sc. Luisa Peters.
Cooperation:
None.
Funding:
Funded by the KlinStrucMed program - doctoral college funded by the Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation. Duration: 07/2017 - 07/2018.
Brief description of the research project:
A kidney transplant is a profound change for both the patient and their relatives. It has been shown that a supportive partnership is associated with better transplant survival, higher adherence, reduced psychological stress and improvements in health-related quality of life. Nevertheless, individual and dyadic stress in couples has been little studied to date and relatives in particular have hardly been the focus of research.
In a cross-sectional study of N = 56 patients and their partners after kidney transplantation, individual and dyadic functioning as well as the emotional climate in the family were investigated in a multimethod approach using self-reports and objective physiological parameters with regard to their relevance for the patient's adherence to immunosuppressive medication. In addition, gender differences (men vs. women) and role differences (patient vs. partner) were analyzed.
Project phase:
The project is currently in the evaluation phase.
Body image and psychological stress in oncology patients and their partners
Project management:
Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Tanja Zimmermann, Dipl.-Psych.
Study staff/doctoral students:
M. Sc. Psych. Jan Brederecke
Funding:
Home remedies.
Study description:
The aim of the study was to improve the measurability and comparability of the construct of body image in patients with different cancer entities and to enable the measurement of cancer-specific psychological stress in relatives of patients with cancer. To this end, the German Self-Image Scale (SIS-D; Brederecke et al., 2020), which has already been evaluated in the normal German population, was to be psychometrically examined in a cancer sample and a newly developed measurement instrument (Questionnaire on the Burden of Cancer - Partner Version; FBK-P) was to be validated for the first time.
Subsequently, the effects of the partnership support program Side by Side - A psycho-oncological treatment program for couples (Zimmermann & Heinrichs, 2008) on the psychological stress of the partners and the body image of patients in couples in which the woman has breast cancer should also be investigated.
Project phase:
The project has been completed.