Living with cancer. Family experiences

Abstract

The focus of this paper is to describe what it is like to live with cancer from the perspective of families. Recent studies indicate that family members' concerns vary with their roles as family members and patient/nonpatient status. Moreover, concerns vary with stage of illness and time since diagnosis. Not all concerns are shared among all family members. Families influence the adjustment of the person with cancer. Family members cope in different ways, and coping patterns vary with status of the disease and the person's role in the family. Nevertheless, families coping in different ways can achieve similar outcomes.