Determinants of satisfaction with the health state of the facial skin in patients undergoing surgery for facial basal cell carcinoma

ObjectiveThe main objective of the study was to assess which health beliefs predict and explain satisfaction with the facial health state of patients undergoing surgery for basal cell carcinoma.MethodsData were collected by administering a newly developed questionnaire pre-operatively and 6 months post-operatively (n = 222).ResultsResults show that satisfaction as measured by post-operative worrying, susceptibility and fear of developing a new BCC at other facial sites can be predicted by pre-operative health beliefs. In addition, some patients an increase in perceived susceptibility, fear of recurrence of BCC on the same site or fear of developing a new BCC at other facial sites.ConclusionOur findings indicate that both pre- and post-operative perceptions predict and explain for a substantial part the extent to which patients are satisfied with their facial health state 6 months after surgery.Practice implicationsAdministering a short questionnaire at the start of the treatment period will give physicians a better understanding of how patients experience this skin disease. It will also help them to adjust information about BCC and its consequences to the needs of the patient.