Knowledge, Attitude and Perceived Effectiveness on MBSR for Anxiety and Depression Among Cancer Patients in Malaysia: A Qualitative Exploration

Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) has been widely utilized in many parts of the world for the treatment of various types of chronic diseases including anxiety and depression among cancer patients. Patients diagnosed with cancer experienced tremendous stress and if left unattended may lead to anxiety and depression and affects clinical outcome. The knowledge, attitude and how patients perceive the effectiveness of MBSR help in program compliance. This study explored the knowledge, attitude, and perceived effectiveness of MBSR for anxiety and depression among cancer patients in Malaysian using a qualitative approach. Face to face interviews was conducted on twenty patients using a semi-structured guided interview guide. A saturation point was reached after the 18th interview, and no new information gathered with the subsequent 2 informants. The recorded interviews were transcribed and analysed according to the standard content analysis framework. N-Vivo program was applied to speed up analysis. Result: Most patients reported to have very little knowledge of MBSR. However, they have a very positive attitude toward the program. They perceived MBSR would be beneficial for their cancer as they believed that anything to do with mind and body would be good for health. Even-though they knew very little about MBSR, most of them have utilized at least one type of MBSR components for their anxiety and depression. This study revealed the primary understanding of cancer patients' knowledge, attitude and perception of MBSR for anxiety and depression, and the type of MBSR used for their stress coping. These findings hopefully will support MBSR to be appreciated in the health care setting as one of the modalities for stress reduction program to complement the existing management of anxiety and depression among cancer patients for a better clinical outcome.