Resilience and positive affect contribute to lower cancer‐related fatigue among Chinese patients with gastric cancer

Aims and objectives To investigate the prevalence of cancer‐related fatigue and explore the relationship between resilience, positive affect, and fatigue among Chinese patients with gastric cancer. Background Cancer‐related fatigue is the most distressing symptom reported frequently by cancer patients during both treatment and survival phases. Resilience and positive affect as vital protective factors against cancer‐related fatigue have been examined, but the underlying psychological mechanisms are not well understood. Design A cross‐sectional study. Methods Two hundred and three gastric cancer patients were enrolled from three hospitals in China. The Cancer Fatigue Scale, the positive affect subscale of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule and the Connor‐Davidson Resilience Scale ( CD ‐ RISC 10) were administered. Hierarchical linear regression modelling was conducted to examine the association between resilience and cancer‐related fatigue, and the mediating effect of positive affect. Results The incidence of clinically relevant fatigue among patients with gastric cancer was 91.6%. Regression analysis showed that resilience was negatively associated with cancer‐related fatigue, explaining 15.4% of variance in cancer‐related fatigue. Mediation analysis showed that high resilience was associated with increased positive affect, which was associated with decreased cancer‐related fatigue. Conclusions Cancer‐related fatigue is prevalent among patients with gastric cancer. Positive affect may mediate the relationship between resilience and cancer‐related fatigue. Relevance to clinical practice Interventions that attend to resilience training and promotion of positive affect may be the focus for future clinical and research endeavours.