Affect regulation as a moderator of intentions for breast cancer chemoprevention

BACKGROUND: Women at high risk for breast cancer (BC) may consider chemoprevention for risk reduction, but uptake is low. This study examined the role of affect regulation (the attempt to alter or control one’s emotions) in decision-making about BC chemoprevention. METHODS: A cross-sectional, single group design was used. High-risk women (N=81) were surveyed. Moderation analyses specified cancer-specific distress as the independent variable, affect regulation (cognitive reappraisal or expressive suppression) as the moderator, and chemoprevention intentions (yes=1, unsure=0, no=−1) as the dependent variable. RESULTS: Cognitive reappraisal significantly moderated the relationship between cancer-specific distress and chemoprevention intentions (p=0.03), but expressive suppression did not (p=0.31). For the 44% of participants who were highest on reappraisal, higher cancer-specific distress was associated with greater intentions for chemoprevention. For the remaining 56%, there was no relationship between cancer-specific distress and chemoprevention intentions. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive reappraisal may play an important role in decisions regarding uptake of chemoprevention.