Psycho-oncology

Psycho-oncology is a field of interdisciplinary study and practice at the intersection of lifestyle, psychology and oncology. It is concerned with aspects of cancer that go beyond medical treatment and include lifestyle, psychological and social aspects of cancer. Sometimes it is also referred to as psychosocial oncology or "behavioral oncology" because it deals with psychosocial and behavioral topics. The field is concerned both with the effects of cancer on a person's psychological health as well as the social and behavioral factors that may affect the disease process of cancer and/or the remission of it. Practitioners of "proactive psycho-oncology" see their work as an autonomous intervention intended to reverse - in the first place - the epigenetic pressure that led to the genetic changes and later the formation of tumors.

This is where the effects of:

• chemobrain or post-chemotherapy cognitive impairment "PCCI" would be addressed.
• Radiation induced cognitive decline issues.
• Placebo effect and the nocebo effect will be studied.
• Self care issues are studied.

Psycho-oncology, as a subspeciality, addresses the two major psychological dimensions of cancer: the psychological responses of patients to cancer at all stages of the disease and that of their families and caretakers (called "oncopsychology"); and the psychological, behavioral and social factors that may influence the disease process (called "psychosocial-oncology").

Psycho-oncology is an area of multi-disciplinary interest and has boundaries with the major specialities in oncology: the clinical disciplines (surgery, medicine, pediatrics, radiotherapy), epidemiology, immunology, endocrinology, biology, pathology, bioethics, palliative care, rehabilitation medicine, clinical trials research and decision making, as well as psychiatry and psychology.