Bangalore’s cancer victims lack emotional support

Bangalore’s cancer victims lack emotional support

Psycho-oncology, a new field which creates specialists to counsel cancer patients and their family, is facing teething troubles in the city. Bangalore is home to the Centre of Psycho-oncology for Education and Research (COPER), one of the few dedicated centres in the country which offer training in psycho-oncology. Though set up in 2006, it has managed to train only about 12 psycho-oncologists since it began.

Many cancer patients undergo severe mental stress brought about by depression, irritableness, concerns about changes to the body, and pain. This affects their family members too. Psycho-oncology came into being from the realisation that oncologists (cancer specialists) may need support from caregivers who can offer emotional support for patients and their families. COPER is funded by the Union Department of Science and Technology, and is associated with the city's National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS). It was started following recommendations from doctors and patients of several cancer hospitals across the country.

Abroad, the Psycho-oncology departments of hospitals are staffed by both trained psychiatrists (medical doctors) as well as psychologists (students of psychology, a social science). COPER has six courses on offer, from the one-month Observership to the 18-month Post-Doctoral programme, all of which are open to non-medical graduates and postgraduates. Medical graduates can apply for the six-month Fellowship programme. Despite this, there are less than five trained psycho-oncologists in the city, out of the 20 in all of India. As of now, many vacant posts of psycho-oncologists are replaced by support groups. So there are opportunities for trained psycho-oncologists.

Brindha Sitaram, Secretary and Director of COPER, said, "Psychological counselling for cancer patients is not like other forms of counselling. Mental problems could be because of several reasons varying from biochemical to metastatic. Sometimes the tumour may cause reactions leading to changes in the brain. Many times, chemotherapy may affect the quality of life."

Anna Abraham, a clinical psychologist with the Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, has been working in the field for about 20 years. "It is very important to have an organised training in psycho-oncology. When we started, we had to study from literature and other sources to understand the psyche of cancer patients and their family members," she said.