Psychosocial impact of sarcoma
| dc.contributor.advisor | O'Keeffe, Fiadhnait | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Larkin, Fionnuala | |
| dc.contributor.advisorexternal | O'Driscoll, Louise | |
| dc.contributor.author | Beghean, Rahela | en |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2026-09-18T15:22:19Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2026-09-18T15:22:19Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2026-04-28 | en |
| dc.date.submitted | 2026-04-28 | |
| dc.description.abstract | Background: Sarcoma is a rare and heterogeneous cancer that can involve complex treatment, visible bodily change, functional disruption, uncertainty, and limited diagnosis-specific support. This thesis examined the psychosocial impact of sarcoma in adults, with a focus on adaptation and predictors of distress and wellbeing. Methods: Two linked studies were conducted. Study 1 was a qualitative meta-synthesis of 40 studies exploring adults’ experiences of sarcoma. Study 2 was a cross-sectional survey of 164 adults with sarcoma examining psychosocial predictors of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Results: Study 1 identified sarcoma as a cumulative psychosocial disruption across the illness trajectory, from diagnosis and treatment to recovery and survivorship. Five themes were identified, showing how adults with sarcoma may experience diagnostic uncertainty, treatment-related threat, altered body image, functional loss, identity disruption, fear of recurrence, social disconnection, and unmet information and rehabilitation needs. Adaptation was understood as ongoing and non-linear, shaped by coping, meaning-making, family and peer support, continuity of care, rehabilitation, and access to sarcoma-informed professionals. Study 2 found high levels of distress, with 66.5% of participants reporting clinically significant anxiety and 46.3% reporting clinically significant depressive symptoms. Lower self-compassion and greater pain interference predicted both anxiety and depression, while body image distress additionally predicted depression. Perceived social support was high but did not independently predict distress. Conclusion: Psychosocial distress in sarcoma is substantial, embodied, and shaped by individual and contextual factors. Findings support sarcoma-informed psychosocial assessment, integrated rehabilitation, and targeted interventions addressing pain-related disruption, body image distress, self-compassion, uncertainty, and adaptation. | en |
| dc.description.status | Not peer reviewed | en |
| dc.description.version | Accepted Version | en |
| dc.format.mimetype | application/pdf | en |
| dc.identifier.citation | Beghean, R. 2026. Psychosocial impact of sarcoma. DClinPsych Thesis, University College Cork. | |
| dc.identifier.endpage | 230 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10468/19296 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en |
| dc.publisher | University College Cork | en |
| dc.rights | © 2026, Rahela Beghean. | |
| dc.rights.uri | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ | |
| dc.subject | Rare cancer | |
| dc.subject | Sarcoma | |
| dc.subject | Psychosocial Impact | |
| dc.subject | Meta-synthesis | |
| dc.subject | Predictor factors of distress and wellbeing | |
| dc.title | Psychosocial impact of sarcoma | |
| dc.title.alternative | Study 1: Psychosocial impact of sarcoma: challenges & adaptation, a metasynthesis | |
| dc.title.alternative | Study 2: Psychosocial impact of sarcoma: psychosocial predictors of distress in adults with sarcoma, a cross-sectional study | |
| dc.type | Doctoral thesis | en |
| dc.type.qualificationlevel | Practitioner Doctorate | en |
| dc.type.qualificationname | DClinPsych - Doctor of Clinical Psychology | en |
