Religious Coping, Practices, and Community Involvement in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer.

Abstract

Psychosocial well-being remains a significant unmet need among head and neck cancer (HNC) survivors in the United States, with limited understanding of the role of faith-based communities and religious coping in addressing social isolation. HNC patients not actively undergoing treatment were recruited to complete validated surveys assessing physical and psychological symptoms, religious participation, and coping. 52 patients completed surveys, of which most had early-stage cancer (61.5%). The majority of participants reported clinically significant pain (52.0%) or fatigue (53.1%). Nearly half of participants reported regular religious or spiritual involvement, with 60.5% attending services at least a few times per year and 48.9% engaging in private practices like prayer or meditation weekly. Negative religious coping was not significantly associated with distress (odds ratio: 1.17, 95% confidence interval: 1.00-1.37, <i>p</i> = 0.06), though this association approached significance. These findings suggest a need for further research on integrating spiritual support into HNC survivorship care.