Effect of self-compassion program on hope in female patients with breast cancer

Breast cancer can lead to a decrease in people's hope and affect their lives; therefore, planning to maintain or improve hope in these patients with training focused on self-compassion seems necessary. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the effect of self-compassion program implementation on the hope of female patients with breast cancer.

In this quasi-experimental study, 60 female patients with breast cancer in Zahedan in 2023 were selected via the available method and were randomly assigned to two groups of 30 cases: intervention and control. For patients in the intervention group, eight sessions of a self-compassion training program were held. Before and three months after the implementation of the intervention, patients' hope was measured using Snyder's hope questionnaire. The data were analyzed in SPSS (version 21) software using independent t, paired t, and chi-square statistical tests.

The t-test demonstrated a significant increase in the mean total score of hope and components of agentive thinking and strategic thinking three months after the completion of the educational intervention in the intervention group (P=0.001). Moreover, the independent t-test results three months after the educational intervention pointed to a statistically significant difference between the control and intervention groups in the mean total score of hope, agentive thinking, and strategic thinking (P=0.001).

The findings of the present study indicated the positive effect of the self-compassion program on the hope of breast cancer patients. Therefore, the mentioned educational communication program, which is an easy, inexpensive, applicable, safe, and effective method, can be used to boost hope among patients after breast cancer diagnosis.