BACKGROUND: Studies suggest that the period following completion of treatment can be distressing for @entity5 @entity1 . One potentially important predictor of distress is physical symptoms/side effects during treatment. PURPOSE: A longitudinal, observational design was used to examine whether the number of physical symptoms/side effects experienced during treatment was a correlate of @entity5 and general distress 4 months after treatment completion, as measured by the Impact of Events Scale and the Mental Health subscale of the Short Form-36, respectively. METHODS: @entity1 were 151 @entity1 who had completed chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy for @entity513 in situ or stage 1 or 2 @entity0 . Hierarchical multiple regression was conducted with relevant sociodemographic, clinical, and @entity146 variables entered as controls. RESULTS: Greater physical symptoms/side effects predicted greater total @entity5 , @entity147 . Physical symptoms/side effects did not significantly predict avoidance. Follow-up analyses indicated that the relationship between physical symptoms/side effects and general distress was mediated by both total @entity5 and @entity24454 . CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that @entity1 who experience greater physical symptoms/side effects during treatment are at greater risk for later @entity5 and, in turn, general distress. Future research should evaluate whether early intervention with these @entity1 is effective in preventing or reducing distress in the posttreatment period.

Physical symptoms/side effects during XXXX treatment predict posttreatment distress.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['women', 'patients', 'Participants'] @entity0 :: ('MESH:D001943', 'Disease') :: ['breast cancer'] @entity146 :: ('MESH:D001523', 'Disease') :: ['psychiatric'] @entity5 :: ('MESH:D009369', 'Disease') :: ['cancer', 'cancer-related distress'] @entity147 :: ('MESH:D005316', 'Disease') :: ['intrusive thoughts, and general distress'] @entity513 :: ('MESH:D044584', 'Disease') :: ['ductal carcinoma'] @entity24454 :: ('MESH:C537310', 'Disease') :: ['intrusive thoughts']
@entity0 :: (MESH:D001943,Disease) :: ['breast cancer']
