British Journal of Health Psychology (2013), 18, 168–181 © 2012 The British Psychological Society www.wileyonlinelibrary.com Beliefs about medicine and illness are associated with fear of cancer recurrence in women taking adjuvant endocrine therapy for breast cancer Arden L. Corter 1 , Michael Findlay 2 , Reuben Broom 3 , David Porter 3 and Keith J. Petrie 1 * 1 Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Auckland, New Zealand 2 Discipline of Oncology, University of Auckland, New Zealand 3 Department of Oncology, Auckland City Hospital, New Zealand Objectives. Adjuvant endocrine therapy for early-stage breast cancer has greatly reduced the morbidity and mortality associated with breast cancer recurrence. Despite this, a significant proportion of women report fears of cancer recurrence. This study examined the associations between fear of cancer recurrence (FoR) and illness perceptions, medication beliefs, and treatment side effects in women taking adjuvant endocrine therapy following breast cancer. Methods. A total of 153 post-menopausal women with early-stage breast cancer completed a postal survey. Analyses were conducted to examine the association between FoR and illness perceptions, medication beliefs, treatment side effects, demographic factors, and emotional distress and to identify which of these factors would be most strongly associated with FoR in a regression model. Results. All illness perceptions (apart from personal control) were associated with FoR, as were patient beliefs about endocrine therapy. Although treatment side effects, being unemployed, and higher levels of anxiety and depression were associated with FoR, only illness perceptions (identity, treatment control, timeline, and emotional represen- tation) and medication necessity beliefs were significantly correlated with FoR in the final model. Conclusions. It appears that, in addition to directly targeting FoR, it may be worthwhile to address the illness and medication beliefs supporting the fear. Additionally, helping women to differentiate everyday symptoms from those indicative of breast cancer may help to reduce fear of recurrence. *Correspondence should be addressed to Keith J. Petrie, Department of Psychological Medicine, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand (e-mail: kj.petrie@auckland.ac.nz). DOI:10.1111/bjhp.12003 168