Facilitating Hope in Patients With Cancer

The purpose of this study was to describe the level of hope in 131 patients recently diagnosed with cancer. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, two quality-of life questionnaires, and the Nowotny Hope Scale. The Nowotny Hope Scale provides a global hope score and a score for each of its six subscales: confidence, relates to others, a future is possible, spiritual beliefs, active involvement, and comes from within. The majority of the participants were female (76%); had fewer than 12 years of education (57%); lived with a spouse, another adult, their parents, or children (74%); had received their cancer diagnosis within the past eight months (91%); and were not receiving any cancer treatment at the time of the study (61%).