Conspiracy of silence and emotional distress in patients diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme

Abstract

Aim: For those patients suffering serious illnesses with a poor prognosis, there continues to be a significant percentage of well-meaning family members who, out of a desire to protect the patient, decide to hide the truth, even if the patient wishes to know what the real situation is. Methods: To measure the incidence of conspiracies of silence within families and their repercussions on levels of anxiety and depression of patients diagnosed Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM). Findings: 19.3 % of the families taking part thought that it would not be appropriate to give the patient information about their disease, despite the patient stating that he or she would like to know more about their disease. This conspiracy had an impact on the anxiety levels of the patient even a month after the discharge from hospital. At this point in the disease process, those patients where there was a conspiracy of silence demonstrated psychopathological levels of anxiety (12.71±2.28), whereas the levels of anxiety for those patients who were allowed more open communication showed levels which were below clinical significance (7.00±3.27). Conclusions: The needs for information of family members and patients with GBM are different and their repercussions on emotional distress in patients can continue during a prolonged period of time.