Providing Relief from Cancer Pain by Assisting in the Search for Meaning

1994 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 15-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Ersek ◽  
Betty R. Ferrell
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Pain ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Search For Meaning ◽  
Distressing Symptom ◽  
Coping With Cancer

Pain is a common, distressing symptom experienced by cancer patients and their family caregivers. An important aspect of coping with cancer pain is the ability to make meaning of the experience. This paper provides an overview of the literature related to meaning-making processes utilized by people experiencing cancer. It also presents an integrated approach to assisting patients and their family caregivers with the meaning-making process associated with cancer pain. Approaches to intervening are integrated within a model developed through previous research.

Family caregivers of advanced cancer patients: self-perceived competency and meaning-making

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irene Teo ◽  
Drishti Baid ◽  
Semra Ozdemir ◽  
Chetna Malhotra ◽  
Ratna Singh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Psychological Outcomes ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Tertiary Hospitals ◽  
Anxiety Depression

BackgroundFamily caregivers of patients with advanced cancer have been reported to provide long hours of care and be at risk for poor psychological outcomes. Although research has focused on the nature of caregiving burden, little attention has been paid to identifying protective factors that improve caregiver psychological outcomes.AimWe examined the relationship between caregivers’ time spent caregiving and the following psychological outcomes: anxiety, depression and caregiving esteem. Subsequently, we explored the main and moderating effects of caregiver-perceived self-competency and sense of meaning on caregiver psychological outcomes.Design/participantsCross-sectional analysis was conducted using the baseline data from an ongoing cohort study. Family caregivers of advanced cancer patients (n=287) were recruited from two tertiary hospitals in Singapore.ResultsTime spent caregiving was not significantly associated with caregiver anxiety, depression or caregiving esteem. However, significant main effects of self-competency on anxiety and caregiving esteem; and sense of meaning on anxiety, depression and caregiving esteem were observed. Moderator analyses further indicated that self-competency attenuated the positive relationship between time spent caregiving and anxiety, while sense of meaning attenuated the negative relationship between time spent caregiving and caregiving esteem.ConclusionGreater perceived self-competency and sense of meaning are related to better caregiver psychological outcomes, and protect caregivers from worsening outcomes as caregiving hours increase. Our findings suggest that screening caregivers for distress is an important part of care, and that supportive interventions for caregivers should aim to enhance their perceived caregiving competencies and the ability to make meaning of their caregiving role.

Lifestyle Interference And Emotional Distress In Family Caregivers Of Advanced Cancer Patients

2002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill I. Cameron ◽  
Renee-Louise Tranche ◽  
Angela M. Cheung ◽  
Donna E. Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Emotional Distress ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients

scholarly journals The Role of Advance Care Planning in Cancer Patient and Caregiver Grief Resolution: Helpful or Harmful?

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1977
Author(s):  
Francesca Falzarano ◽  
Holly G. Prigerson ◽  
Paul K. Maciejewski
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Advance Care Planning ◽  
Care Planning ◽  
Do Not Resuscitate ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal Study ◽  
Advance Care ◽  
Grief Resolution ◽  
Caregiver Grief ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal

Cancer patients and their family caregivers experience various losses when patients become terminally ill, yet little is known about the grief experienced by patients and caregivers and factors that influence grief as patients approach death. Additionally, few, if any, studies have explored associations between advance care planning (ACP) and grief resolution among cancer patients and caregivers. To fill this knowledge gap, the current study examined changes in grief over time in patients and their family caregivers and whether changes in patient grief are associated with changes in caregiver grief. We also sought to determine how grief changed following the completion of advance directives. The sample included advanced cancer patients and caregivers (n = 98 dyads) from Coping with Cancer III, a federally funded, multi-site prospective longitudinal study of end-stage cancer care. Participants were interviewed at baseline and at follow-up roughly 2 months later. Results suggest synchrony, whereby changes in patient grief were associated with changes in caregiver grief. We also found that patients who completed a living will (LW) experienced increases in grief, while caregivers of patients who completed a do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order experienced reductions in grief, suggesting that ACP may prompt “grief work” in patients while promoting grief resolution in caregivers.

Distress experienced by lung cancer patients and their family caregivers in the first year of their cancer journey

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Michèle Aubin ◽  
Lucie Vézina ◽  
René Verreault ◽  
Sébastien Simard ◽  
Éveline Hudon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Screening Program ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Participation Rate ◽  
Quebec City ◽  
Lung Cancer Patients ◽  
Distress Score ◽  
Ambulatory Oncology

Abstract Objectives Diagnosis of cancer is emotionally threatening not only for patients but also for their family caregivers (FC) who witness and share much of the illness experience. This study compares distress experienced by lung cancer patients and their FC during the year following the diagnosis. Methods A prospective cohort study of 206 patients recently diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer (participation rate 79.5%) and 131 FC (participation rate 63.6%) was conducted in an ambulatory oncology clinic in Quebec City (Canada). They completed validated questionnaires regarding their personal and psychological characteristics (Hospital and Anxiety Depression Scale—HADS), in the first months after the diagnosis of lung cancer and after 6 and 12 months. Univariate, bivariate, and linear mixed models were conducted to compare patient and FC distress. Results At baseline, 7.8% of patients reported distress (HADS total score >15) and their mean distress score was 7.0 ± 4.9 (range 0–42). In contrast, 33.6% of FC presented significant distress and their mean distress score was 12.0 ± 7.2 (P < 0.0001). Proportions of patients and FC with distress remained relatively stable at 6 and 12 months, and at every time point, FC reported higher levels of distress compared to their relative with cancer (P < 0.0001). Comparable trends were found when looking at the mean scores of distress, anxiety, and depression throughout the study. Significance of results Being diagnosed with lung cancer and going through its different phases seems to affect more FC than patients. The psychological impact of such diagnosis appears early after the diagnosis and does not significantly change over time. These findings reinforce the importance for oncology teams, to include FC in their systematic distress screening program, in order to help them cope with their own feelings and be able to play their role in patient support and care throughout the cancer journey.

Associations between caregiving worries and psychophysical well-being. An investigation on home-cared cancer patients family caregivers

2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 857-863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronica Zavagli ◽  
Elisabetta Miglietta ◽  
Silvia Varani ◽  
Raffaella Pannuti ◽  
Gianni Brighetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Well Being

Symptom Experiences: Perceptual Accuracy Between Advanced-Stage Cancer Patients and Family Caregivers in the Home Care Setting

2002 ◽  
Vol 20 (16) ◽  
pp. 3495-3507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle M. Lobchuk ◽  
Lesley F. Degner
Keyword(s):  
Home Care ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Care Setting ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
Absolute Difference ◽  
Advanced Stage ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Symptom Experiences ◽  
Advanced Stage Cancer

PURPOSE: This study used a comparative descriptive design to compare family caregivers’ and advanced-stage cancer patients’ perceptions of patients’ multidimensional symptom experiences on presence, frequency, severity, and distress. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A convenience sample of 98 dyads, composed of advanced-stage heterogeneous cancer patients and their caregivers, completed the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale in the home care setting on a one-time basis. This scale is a 32-item Likert-type scale for assessing the presence, frequency, severity, and distress arising from symptoms in cancer patients. RESULTS: There was confirmation of trends previously described in related studies where, for example, caregivers tend to overreport on symptom experiences. However, the degree of absolute difference between patient and caregiver responses was normally around 1 unit (on a theoretical range of 0 to 4 units). Levels of patient-caregiver agreement were better on more concrete questions related to symptom frequency, severity, and distress than on broad questions related to the presence of a symptom. Patients and caregivers achieved better levels of agreement on physical versus psychological symptoms. CONCLUSION: The findings indicated that family caregivers can provide reasonable proxy or complementary reports on patient symptom experiences of frequency, severity, and distress. However, family caregivers have greater difficulty in achieving high levels of accuracy on psychological versus physical symptoms.

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