Uncertainty in illness and its relationship with life satisfaction in Iranian patients with breast Cancer: A cross-sectional study

Introduction Breast cancer significantly impacts women’s physical, psychological, and social well-being. Illness uncertainty affects coping strategies, psychological adjustment, treatment adherence, and overall quality of life. Life satisfaction may mediate these effects, but its relationship with uncertainty remains underexplored. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between illness uncertainty and life satisfaction among breast cancer patients. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 175 breast cancer patients recruited from hospitals and cancer associations in Tabriz, Iran, between 2023 and 2024. Data on socio-demographic, and clinical variables were collected through validated instruments, including the Persian Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale (MUIS) and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS). Pearson’s correlation coefficient was applied to assess the relationship between uncertainty in illness and life satisfaction in bivariate analysis and general linear model (GLM) in multivariate analysis with adjusting the socio-demographic variables. Results The mean (SD) score of illness uncertainty was 115.7 (18.6) from the obtainable score range of 30 to 150 and the mean (SD) score of life satisfaction was 22.4 (7.7) from the obtainable score range of 5 to 35. A significant positive correlation was found between uncertainty and life satisfaction (r = 0.6, p < 0.001). The results of GLM indicated a significant increase in life satisfaction with increasing uncertainty in illness score (β = 3.58, 95%CI: 1.41 to 5.75, p = 0.001). Conclusions The study reveals high levels of uncertainty and moderate life satisfaction in breast cancer care. Future research should explore longitudinal effects and cultural variations to inform global breast cancer care strategies.