Psycho-oncology development in former Eastern Bloc countries – analysis of survey

Introduction: Psycho-oncology is an interdisciplinary field of medicine. In Europe its development falls in the 1980’s, 20th century. However, in some countries of the former Eastern Bloc quite a different situation occurs since psycho-oncology, as generally defined, has just come into existence.

Aim: Assessment of the current situation with regards to psycho-oncology development in selected countries of the former Eastern Bloc: Belarus, Kazakhstan, Lithuania and Ukraine.

Material and methods: The analysis includes data collected based on survey forms filled in by medical staff representing the selected countries of the former Eastern Bloc and data on psycho-oncology development provided by medical employees from the specific countries. 120 medical employees were asked to participate in the survey that was conducted in the period from January to March 2012.

Results: A profession most frequently declared by the respondents was a doctor (from 34.8% in Belarus, up to 63.6% in Ukraine) or a psychologist (from 4% in Kazakhstan to 56.5% in Belarus). The age of the respondents was between 21 and 65 (the average being 40.37). When it comes to the development of psycho-oncology in the selected countries of the former Eastern Bloc, only in Lithuania there is a domestic association in this field, which organizes education for professionals, patients and their families and carries out scientific trials.

Conclusions: Psycho-oncology in the countries analyzed is at its early stage of development except for Lithuania. The main objectives, tasks and principles of psycho-oncology in the selected countries of the former Eastern Bloc are similar to those identified in Poland.