A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association notes that religious patients found in terminal stages of cancer were three times more likely to receive intensive life-prolonging treatment than those not relying on spiritual beliefs.

 

The study, made by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, and five other sites, involved 345 advanced cancer patients treated between January 2003 and August 2007 at medical facilities across the US. Use of religion to cope with illness was assessed through questionnaires and patient interviews. Their death occurred an average of four months after enrollment.

 

The researchers found that roughly four out of five patients reported that religion helped them cope “to a moderate extent” or more and close to one in three agreed with the statement “it is the most important thing that keeps me going.” About 56 percent of the patients reported praying, meditating, or studying their religion daily.

 

Patients who reported a high level of positive religious coping were more likely to be black or Hispanic. They also tended to be less educated, were less likely to have medical insurance, or be married than patients who reported a low reliance on religion. Of these patients, 11 percent had mechanical ventilation during their last week f life and 7.4 percent underwent cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), compared to 3.6 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively, of patients who reported a low level of religious coping.

 

Study author Holly Prigerson, associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, said religious people may have believed that God could work through aggressive medical procedures.

 

“We suspect they are waiting for a miracle. They are more likely to think that life is sacred and that their job is to prove their faith to God by staying alive as long as possible, so miracles can be performed,” Prigerson said.