Introduction

The human cost of cancer is staggering. Worldwide there were 10.9 million new cases, 6.7 million deaths and 24.6 million persons alive with cancer (within three years of diagnosis; Parkin et al., 2005). In many countries cancer is the second leading cause of death, only outnumbered by heart disease. In the United States, it has been the leading cause of death for persons younger than 85 since 1999, and over 1 million new cancer cases and almost 600 000 deaths are expected in 2005 (Jemal et al., 2005). However, there is striking variation across geographic locations. Research on the psychological and behavioural aspects of oncology began in the early 1950s; however, significant expansion has occurred in the last 25 years. This research has clarified biobehavioural factors in illness (Andersen et al., 1994), including relations between psychological responses and factors (e.g. personality, mood, coping style) and behavioural variables (e.g. compliance with treatment, diet, exercise), with more recent research incorporating biologic systems (e.g. immune and endocrine) and examining the interaction of these variables and their relationship to disease course (Andersen et al., 2004).

This chapter provides a brief overview of the central findings which have emerged on the psychological and behavioural aspects of cancer. Other chapters in this volume can be consulted for site-specific findings. By way of introduction, we will begin with data on cancer incidence, death rates and gender differences.