Making sense of a diagnosis of incurable cancer: The importance of communication

Lobb, Elizabeth; Lacey, Judith; White, L.; Hosie, Annmarie; Kearsley, John H.

doi:10.26443/ijwpc.v2i1.88

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

References 31 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…A recent study of Bradford et al (2022), regarding AYAs with advanced cancer suggests that coping is a dynamic process where different strategies are used depending on the stressor, available resources and previous experiences. Earlier research on AYAs or adult patients with advanced cancer found acceptance, positive attitude by making comparisons with people in worse situations and setting realistic goals, keeping hope and support seeking as the most commonly used coping strategies (Trevino et al, 2012;Lobb et al, 2015;García-Rueda et al, 2016;Walshe et al, 2017;Lie et al, 2018;Bradford et al, 2022). Arantzamendi et al (2020) redefined the theory of "living well with chronic illness" to explain the experience of living with advanced cancer.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Double awareness”—adolescents and young adults coping with an uncertain or poor cancer prognosis: A qualitative study

Burgers

Bent²,

Rietjens³

et al. 2022

Front. Psychol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

IntroductionAdolescents and young adults with an uncertain or poor cancer prognosis (UPCP) are confronted with ongoing and unique age-specific challenges, which forms an enormous burden. To date, little is known about the way AYAs living with a UPCP cope with their situation. Therefore, this study explores how AYAs with a UPCP cope with the daily challenges of their disease.MethodWe conducted semi-structured in-depth interviews among AYAs with a UPCP. Patients of the three AYA subgroups were interviewed (traditional survivors, new survivors, low-grade glioma survivors), since we expected different coping strategies among these subgroups. Interviews were analyzed using elements of the Grounded Theory by Corbin and Strauss. AYA patients were actively involved as research partners.ResultsIn total 46 AYAs with UPCP participated, they were on average 33.4 years old (age range 23–44) and most of them were woman (63%). Most common tumor types were low-grade gliomas (16), sarcomas (7), breast cancers (6) and lung cancers (6). We identified seven coping strategies in order to reduce the suffering from the experienced challenges: (1) minimizing impact of cancer, (2) taking and seeking control, (3) coming to terms, (4) being positive, (5) seeking and receiving support, (6) carpe diem and (7) being consciously alive.ConclusionThis study found seven coping strategies around the concept of ‘double awareness’ and showcases that AYAs are able to actively cope with their disease but prefer to actively choose life over illness. The findings call for CALM therapy and informal AYA support meetings to support this group to cope well with their disease.

show abstract