Comparison of Death Anxiety in Women with Reproductive and Gastrointestinal Cancers and Predicting Factors

Death anxiety is one of the most common problems in cancer patients and can affect the beneficial course of treatment. This study aimed to compare the death anxiety among women with reproductive and gastrointestinal cancers and related factors in healthcare centers of Isfahan, Iran in 2017. This descriptive and analytical research was conducted on 160 women with breast and cervical cancers and gastric and colon cancers divided into two equal groups of 80. The subjects were selected via random sampling, and data were collected applying demographic characteristics questionnaire and Templer death anxiety scale. In addition, data analysis was performed in SPSS version 22 using statistical and descriptive tests. In this research, the highest frequency of breast and cervical cancers (52.5%) and gastric and colon cancers (53.8%) was related to the age range of 41-60 years. Results demonstrated that the mean score of death anxiety was significantly higher in women with breast and cervical cancers (47.8±20.30), compared to the subjects with gastrointestinal cancers (44.19±41.10) (P=0.045). Moreover, in the participants with gastrointestinal cancers, death anxiety was less observed in those with no children, compared to the subjects with children (P<0.05). According to the results of the study, death anxiety level was higher in women with breast and cervical cancers. It could be concluded that cancers associated with damage to female identity cause more anxiety in women. Therefore, it is suggested that this issue be considered by nurses of the cancer wards to provide spiritual support with the help of support systems (e.g., family of patients).