title: Childhood experiences of cancer : an interpretative phenomenological analysis approach
creator: Griffiths, Maya
creator: Schweitzer, Robert
creator: Yates, Patsy
subject: 111000 NURSING
subject: 111799 Public Health and Health Services not elsewhere classified
subject: Cancer
subject: Children
subject: Phenomenology
subject: Lived Experience
description: Pediatric oncology has emerged as one of the great medical success stories of the last 4 decades. The cure rate of  childhood cancer has increased from approximately 25% in the 1960’s to more than 75% in more recent years. However,  very little is known about how children actually experience the diagnosis and treatment of their illness. A total  of 9 families in which a child was diagnosed with cancer were interviewed twice over a 12-month period. Using the  qualitative methodology of interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), children’s experiences of being patients with a diagnosis of cancer were explicated. The results revealed 5 significant themes: the experience of illness, the upside of being sick, refocusing on what is important, acquiring a new perspective, and the experience of returning to wellbeing. Changes over time were noted because children’s experiences’ were often pertinent to the stage of treatment the child had reached. These results revealed rich and intimate information about a sensitive issue with implications for understanding child development and medical and psychosocial treatment.
publisher: Sage Publications, Inc.
date: 2011-03
type: Journal Article
format: application/pdf
relation: https://eprints.qut.edu.au/39044/2/39044.pdf
relation: DOI:10.1177/1043454210377902
relation:    Griffiths, Maya, Schweitzer, Robert,  & Yates, Patsy   (2011)    Childhood experiences of cancer : an interpretative phenomenological analysis approach.  Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing, 28(2), pp. 83-92.    
identifier: https://eprints.qut.edu.au/39044/
source: Centre for Health Research; Faculty of Health; Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation