"Just because you've got lung cancer doesn't mean I will": lung cancer, smoking, and family dynamics.
Although individuals who are diagnosed with smoking-related disorders are offered smoking cessation programs, little attention has been directed toward reducing tobacco use among healthy relatives who smoke. The purpose of this article is to report smoking relatives' responses to a family member's diagnosis of lung disease, their constructions of smoking in this context, and their interaction patterns with the patient. Interviews with 11 family members where there was a diagnosis of lung cancer and 3 family members where there was another serious smoking-related diagnosis were analyzed. Family members used two strategies to support their continued smoking: distancing themselves from the diagnosis and taking the position that smoking cessation needed to be internally motivated by the "right reason" and initiated at the "right time" to anticipate success. The few participants who chose to quit, did so in support of their ill family member. The findings provide direction for intervening with family members who smoke.
Robinson
Carole A
CA
Faculty of Health and Social Development, School of Nursing, University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. carole.robinson@ubc.ca
Bottorff
Joan L
JL
Smith
Michelle L
ML
Sullivan
Kelli M
KM
D001294:Attitude to Health; D002755:Choice Behavior; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D016540:Smoking Cessation; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012944:Social Support