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March 29th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda THURSDAY, March 29 (HealthDay News) — Feelings of shame, social
isolation and rejection can heighten depression in lung cancer patients, a
new study finds.
The findings may help explain why depression is more common among lung
cancer patients than among patients with other kinds of cancer, according
to the researchers at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla.
“Given its strong association with tobacco use, lung cancer is commonly
viewed as a preventable disease,” study co-author Paul Jacobsen said in a
Moffitt news release. “Consequently, patients may blame themselves for
developing lung cancer and feel stigmatized. Even lung cancer patients who
have never smoked often felt — accurately or inaccurately — that they
were being blamed for their disease by friends, loved ones and even
health-care professionals.”
For the study, the researchers gave mental-health questionnaires to
lung cancer patients and found that 38 percent of them suffered from
depression. Greater levels of perceived stigma were associated with
greater levels of depression.
The study was published in the March issue of the journal
Psycho-Oncology.
“Documenting this link between stigma and depression is important
because it adds further evidence to the growing body of research
suggesting a link between illness-related stigma and the symptoms of
depression,” Jacobsen said. “For example, studies on depression and HIV
have found similar links between disease, stigma and depression.”
The findings suggest that psychotherapeutic approaches might be useful
in treating or preventing depression in lung cancer patients, study
co-author Brian Gonzalez said.
“Many approaches to reducing perceived stigma focus on education of the
public about lung cancer inaccuracies and stereotypes, and replacing those
inaccuracies with facts,” Gonzalez said in the news release.
“Instead, therapy that focuses on altering the patient’s thoughts and
feelings associated with their perceptions of stigma may prove effective
in reducing depressive symptoms,” Gonzalez said. “For example, emphasizing
the addictiveness of tobacco products and the deception in
tobacco-industry advertising could help patients view themselves as being
‘wronged’ rather than as a ‘wrongdoer.'”
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Mental Health has more about depression and cancer.
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