'Getting back to normal' or 'a new type of normal'? : a qualitative study of patients' responses to the existential threat of cancer

Baker, P. and Beesley, H. and Fletcher, Ian John and Ablett, J. and Holcombe, C. and Salmon, P. (2016) 'Getting back to normal' or 'a new type of normal'? : a qualitative study of patients' responses to the existential threat of cancer. European Journal of Cancer Care, 25 (1). pp. 180-189. ISSN 0961-5423

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Abstract

Existential concerns about cancer have been studied extensively in palliative care but less so in curative settings. The present report aims to describe ways in which patients viewed the continuity or discontinuity of their identity in the face of the mortal threat of cancer. Twenty-eight patients with breast, prostate or lung cancer attending pre-treatment, treatment or follow-up appointments were interviewed about their emotional experiences following diagnosis. Qualitative analysis followed an inductive, constant comparative approach. Patients spoke of ‘getting back to normal’, but presented two distinct accounts of ‘normality’. Some, particularly those only recently diagnosed, maintained continuity to past identity by upholding previous routines, emphasising resilience and minimising the impact of cancer. Others talked of a new ‘normality’ discontinuous with their past. Most accounts, however, evidenced elements of continuity and discontinuity, often in ostensibly contradictory ways. We suggest that holding contradictory perspectives simultaneously characterises an intermediate stage of adjustment for some patients: between reliance on continuity with the past in the aftermath of diagnosis and, later, a sense of being a new person, changed by cancer. Practitioners should appreciate that patients' wishes for ‘normality’ can signify very different responses to cancer, and that holding such contradictory orientations is functional, not aberrant.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
European Journal of Cancer Care
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2700/2730
Subjects:
?? cancerexistenceemotional distressidentitydisavowaloncology ??
ID Code:
79139
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
20 Apr 2016 12:54
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
28 Nov 2023 10:49