An everyday struggle-Swedish families' lived experiences during a child's cancer treatment.
The aim was to elucidate families' lived experience during a child's cancer treatment. Interviews were conducted with members of 11 affected families. A hermeneutical phenomenological approach was chosen. "Focus on the ill child-An everyday struggle" emerged as an essential theme. The families' lived experience of daily life was described as "feeling drained," "disrupting family life," "feeling locked up and isolated," "retaining normality," "becoming experts," and "changing perspectives." The result indicates that life during a child's cancer treatment is a taxing period and that the entire family is in need of support to ease their burdens.
Division of Nursing, Department of Health Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. maria.bjork@med.lu.se
Maria
M
Björk
Thomas
T
Wiebe
Inger
I
Hallström
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D017281:Cost of Illness; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D024802:Nurse's Role; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D010371:Pediatric Nursing; D002666:Psychology, Child; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012934:Social Isolation; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden