Maladaptive Personality Features, Alexithymia, and Traumatic Events as Risk Factors for Patients With Cancer Diagnosis

Abstract

It is critical to investigate the role of psychological and psychosocial factors involved in cancer diagnosis, in order to improve prevention and treatment strategies. Two hundred and six Italian participants (healthy group, 118 adult volunteers, 53.4% female; target group, 88 patients with first-time cancer diagnosis, 55.7% female) completed questionnaires measuring maladaptive personality traits, alexithymia, and traumatic events. Controlling for gender, age, and education, results showed that higher age and lower education, together with higher exposure to traumatic events and increased levels of negative affectivity, were significant predictors of belonging to the target group. Our findings suggest the need of an early assessment of psychological functioning and traumatic history in cancer patients, in order to promote more effective prevention strategies and tailored treatment approaches.