- What is the relationship between worry about test results and fear of cancer recurrence/progression (FCRP)?
- H1: worry will be positively associated with FCRP
- What factors predict both worry about test results and FCRP?
- H2: Clinical and psychological factors will be associated with both worry and FCRP:
- Clinical factors: stage, shorter time since treatment completion
- Psychological factors: lower belief in cure, less advanced epistemic beliefs, lower hope, lower coping (individual strategies)
- How do both uncertainty about cancer recurrence/progression and uncertainty about cure relate to worry about test results, fear of cancer recurrence/progression (FCRP), and hope?
- H3: Both uncertainty about cancer recurrence/progression and uncertainty about cure will be negatively associated with worry and FCRP, and positively associated with hope (i.e., suggesting a fear-reducing and hope-promoting effect of greater uncertainty)
- How do epistemic beliefs (beliefs in the limitations of medical knowledge) influence the relationships between uncertainty about cancer recurrence/progression and both worry and FCRP?
- H4: Epistemic beliefs will moderate the relationship between uncertainty about cancer recurrence/progression and both worry and FCRP; more advanced epistemic beliefs will be associated with a less positive relationship between uncertainty and both worry and FCRP
- Worry about test results (Worry interference scale)
- Fear of cancer recurrence/progression (FCRP)
- FCRP scale (2 items)
- Uncertainty about cancer recurrence/progression
- Belief in cure
- Possibility of cure
- Likelihood of cure
- Uncertainty about cure
- Hope (Herth Hope Index)
- Advanced epistemic beliefs (belief in unknowability)
- Coping (Brief COPE scale items)
- Acceptance
- Emotional support
- Disengagement
- Information seeking
- Complementary medicine
- Planning
- Reframing