Religious comfort and anxiety in women with cancer: The mediating role of hope and moderating role of religious struggle

OBJECTIVE Religiosity is an important source of consolation among individuals suffering from cancer. However, religion does not always bring comfort. Religious struggles elicit stress. We examined whether religious comfort predicts anxiety in patients diagnosed as having cancer. Hope was examined as a mediator and religious struggle as a moderator in this relationship. METHODS In this cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical research, 77 Polish women with cancer were selected using sequential convenience sampling. Data were collected using the Religious Comfort and Strain Scale, the Adult Hope Scale, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. A statistical procedure using Pearson's correlation c…