The buffering role of social support on the severity of physical symptoms among patients living with cancer.

Background: The role of perceived social support (the individual's perception that family, friends and others are available as psychological, social and material support) and its moderating effect on the psychological and physical factors among patients suffering medical problems is still debated.

Aim: To explore the effect of perceived social support on the relationship between psychological and health-related factors on the severity of physical symptoms among patients with cancer.

Methods: A descriptive-correlational, cross-sectional design was used to recruit 459 patients with cancer from three major hospitals in Jordan. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire.

Results: Social support was significantly correlated to the severity of physical symptoms (p>.05) among patients with cancer, while psychological distress, sadness, disturbed body image and anxiety were not (p<.05). The multiple hierarchal regression model showed that social support has no significant moderation effect on the relationship between psychological and health-related factors and the severity of physical symptoms controlling for sociodemographic factors among patients with cancer.

Conclusion: Patients with cancer suffering physical and psychological disturbances do not benefit from social support as a way of controlling the severity of their symptoms. Palliative nurses need to tailor a social support intervention to their patients with cancer, in order to use both professional and family resources.