Psychosomatic correlation in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Abstract

 In psychosomatic medicine or psychosomatic internal medicine, the term “psychosomatic correlation” is often used. This term describes the bidirectional relationship between physical illness and psychosocial factors, a situation in which they influence each other. In other words, the psychosomatic correlation in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) indicates a bidirectional relationship in which HSCT (or the physical disease being treated) affects psychosocial factors, and psychosocial factors also affect HSCT (or the physical disease being treated). In the present review article, I will review previous studies related to the bidirectional effects, introduce the Japanese version of “Psychosocial Assessment of Candidates for Transplantation (PACT)” developed by the author and his colleagues to assess psychosocial factors prior to HSCT, and show the results of a study showing that the prognosis after HSCT was influenced by psychosocial factors prior to transplantation using this assessment method. In addition, better care of HSCT patients will be discussed.