Self-stigma predicts lower quality of life in Chinese American breast cancer survivors: exploring the mediating role of intrusive thoughts and posttraumatic growth

It is common for Chinese American breast cancer survivors to believe that having cancer is a stigmatizing condition. Little research exists on how this might affect their quality of life (QoL) and through which psychological processes.

In the present study, we examined the association between self-stigma and QoL in a sample of Chinese American breast cancer survivors and tested the potential mediating roles of intrusive thoughts and posttraumatic growth in this relationship.

One hundred and thirty-six Chinese American breast cancer survivors completed a questionnaire packet assessing their levels of self-stigma, intrusive thoughts, posttraumatic growth, and QoL.

As hypothesized, findings indicated a significant negative correlation between self-stigma and QoL. Findings from a path analysis indicated significant indirect effects of self-stigma on QoL through intrusive thoughts and posttraumatic growth—the negative correlation between self-stigma and QoL was completely mediated by more intrusive thoughts and less posttraumatic growth.

Our findings suggest that self-stigma may harm QoL among Chinese American breast cancer survivors by leading to more intrusive thoughts and not focusing on posttraumatic growth. To attenuate the negative impact of self-stigma on QoL among Chinese American breast cancer survivors, cognition-focused interventions should be utilized to reduce intrusive thoughts and foster posttraumatic growth.