Prayer and spiritual well-being in cancer patients

To examine the correlation between prayer and spiritual well-being in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy attending cancer centers of Iran and Tehran Medical Sciences Universities during January to May 2006.

This was a descriptive study. The Paloutzian & Ellison's spiritual well-being questionnaire (1989) and the prayer activity questionnaire (Paloma & Pendleton, 1991 and Meraviglia, 2002) were used for data collection. 360 patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy were entered into the study.

The findings showed that the level of patients' spiritual wellbeing was high. The mean score of spiritual wellbeing was 98.35±14.36. The previous prayer experiences and attitudes toward prayer in 57.2% and 52.2% of patients were desirable respectively. Statistical analysis showed that prayer and spiritual wellbeing were strongly correlated.

A strong and direct correlation exists between prayer and spiritual-wellbeing of patients with cancer. Healthcare providers can encourage patients diagnosed with life-threatening diseases to explore their spirituality as an effective resource for dealing with the physical and psychological responses to cancer.