From literature, it is known that patients with a supportive network experience fewer problems from a disease than those with a less supportive social network. In research, social support is commonly used to describe the social position of patients. Contrary to measurements of social support, loneliness is seldom used to measure the social environment of patients, although loneliness could give insight into the situations where social support is absent. In chapter 5 the research question is whether feelings of loneliness can be predicted by living conditions, such as living with a partner and whether children are present, or by personal capacities. The idea of personal capacities was described by self-efficacy, the conviction of a person that he or she can deal with problems and complex situations, and by social mobilisation, the conviction of a person that he or she is capable of asking for support from the existing social network.
Results show that feelings of loneliness are mainly explained by personal capacities.
In chapter 6 the influence of personal capacities and social environment on the health status of cancer patients is examined. The aim of this chapter was to analyse the influence of psycho-social factors on the health status of cancer patients. The extent to which patients feel lonely, and the extent to which patients find themselves capable of dealing with problems, contributes to the general, physical, social and mental health status of cancer patients. The extent to which cancer patients experience social support does have a significant influence on their mental health. The analyses show that the general health of cancer patients is explained by loneliness and comorbidities.