Identifying Important Challenges of Coping with Female Breast Cancer among Iranian Spouses: A Qualitative Study
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Abstract
Objective: Breast cancer is a multidimensional crisis for women and their spouses that affects every aspect of their life. Coping with this disease requires investigating and resolving the challenges faced by all those affected by it. The present study was conducted to clarify these challenges on the basis of lived experiences of the spouses of women with breast cancer.
Method: The present qualitative research performed an interpretive phenomenological analysis in Iran.Purposive sampling was employed to select twenty spouses of women with breast cancer. The data collected through unstructured face-to-face interviews were analyzed using van Manen’s method. To ensure the rigor of the study, Lincoln and Guba’s criteria were evaluated in the qualitative process.
Results: Lived experiences of the spouses of the women with breast cancer in coping with challenges included the four themes of emotional confusion, shouldering the burden of care, psychophysical suffering caused by the disease and life without cohesion.
Conclusion: Spouses of the women with breast cancer in the Iranian community faced several challenges and issues. The socioeconomic support provided by supporting organizations and medical personnel appear to help moderate these challenges and improve coping in this group.
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9. Barthakur MS, Sharma MP, Chaturvedi SK, Manjunath SK. Body Image and Sexuality in Women Survivors of Breast Cancer in India: Qualitative Findings. Indian J Palliat Care. 2017;23(1):13-7.
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14. Vargün B. Men’s and women’s position in the family in the context of social gender roles. Journal of Human Sciences. 2016;13(2):2952-9.
15. Gonzalez-Robledo LM, MC González-Robledo MC, Caballero M, Nigenda G, Katz A, Knaul Marie F. Family support to women with breast cancer in Mexico: The male role. J Family Medicine and Care.2018;1(2): 1-2
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17. Boatemaa Benson R, Cobbold B, Opoku Boamah E, Akuoko CP, Boateng D. Challenges, coping strategies, and social support among breast cancer patients in Ghana. J Advances in Public Health. 2020; Volume 2020 https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/4817932.
18. FALTERMAIER T. Why public health research needs qualitative approaches: Subjects and methods in change. Eur J Public Health. 1997;7(4):357-63.
19. Burkoski V, Yoon J, Hutchinson D, Solomon S, Collins BE. Experiences of Nurses Working in a Fully Digital Hospital: A Phenomenological Study. Nurs Leadersh (Tor Ont). 2019;32(Sp):72-85.
20. Van Manen M. Phenomenology of practice. J Phenomenology & Practice. 2007;1 (1), 11-30.
21. Zahavi D. The practice of phenomenology: The case of Max van Manen. Nurs Philos. 2020;21(2):e12276.
22. Duprez C, Vanlemmens L, Untas A, Antoine P, Lesur A, Loustalot C, et al. Emotional distress and subjective impact of the disease in young women with breast cancer and their spouses. Future Oncol. 2017;13(29):2667-80.
23. Çömez S, Karayurt Ö. We as Spouses Have Experienced a Real Disaster!: A Qualitative Study of Women With Breast Cancer and Their Spouses. Cancer Nurs. 2016;39(5):E19-28.
24. Hasson‐Ohayon I, Goldzweig G, Braun M, Galinsky D. Women with advanced breast cancer and their spouses: diversity of support and psychological distress. Psychooncology. 2010;19(11):1195-1204.
25. Glajchen M. The emerging role and needs of family caregivers in cancer care. J Support Oncol. 2004;2(2):145-55.
26. Grunfeld E, Coyle D, Whelan T, Clinch J, Reyno L, Earle CC, et al. Family caregiver burden: results of a longitudinal study of breast cancer patients and their principal caregivers. Cmaj. 2004;170(12):1795-801.
27. Zere E, Mandlhate C, Mbeeli T, Shangula K, Mutirua K, Kapenambili W. Equity in health care in Namibia: developing a needs-based resource allocation formula using principal components analysis. Int J Equity Health. 2007;6:3.
28. Neris RR, Anjos AC. [Experience of spouses of women with breast cancer: an integrative literature review]. Rev Esc Enferm USP. 2014;48(5):922-31.
29. Zahlis EH, Lewis FM. Coming to grips with breast cancer: the spouse's experience with his wife's first six months. J Psychosoc Oncol. 2010;28(1):79-97.
30. Girgis A, Lambert S, Johnson C, Waller A, Currow D. Physical, psychosocial, relationship, and economic burden of caring for people with cancer: a review. J Oncol Pract. 2013;9(4):197-202.
2. Bray F, Ferlay J, Soerjomataram I, Siegel RL, Torre LA, Jemal A. Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2018;68(6):394-424.
3. Zaidi Z, Dib Adlane H. The worldwide female breast cancer incidence and survival, 2018: J AACR. 2019;17(13).
4. Ferlay J, Soerjomataram I, Ervik M, Dikshit R, Eser S, Mathers C. Cancer incidence and mortality worldwide: sources, methods and major patterns in GLOBOCAN 2012.ijc. 2015;136(5).
5. Nafissi N, Khayamzadeh M, Zeinali Z, Pazooki D, Hosseini M, Akbari ME. Epidemiology and histopathology of breast cancer in Iran versus other Middle Eastern countries. Middle East J Cancer. 2018;9(3):243-51.
6. Alexander A, Kaluve R, Prabhu JS, Korlimarla A, Srinath BS, Manjunath S, et al. The Impact of Breast Cancer on the Patient and the Family in Indian Perspective. Indian J Palliat Care. 2019;25(1):66-72.
7. Yıldız G, Hiçdurmaz D. An Overlooked Group in the Psychosocial Care in Breast Cancer: Spouses. Current Approaches in Psychiatry/Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar. 2019;11(2).
8. Banning M, Hafeez H, Faisal S, Hassan M, Zafar A. The impact of culture and sociological and psychological issues on Muslim patients with breast cancer in Pakistan. Cancer Nurs. 2009;32(4):317-24.
9. Barthakur MS, Sharma MP, Chaturvedi SK, Manjunath SK. Body Image and Sexuality in Women Survivors of Breast Cancer in India: Qualitative Findings. Indian J Palliat Care. 2017;23(1):13-7.
10. Elsheshtawy EA, Abo-Elez WF, Ashour HS, Farouk O, El Zaafarany MI. Coping strategies in egyptian ladies with breast cancer. Breast Cancer (Auckl). 2014;8:97-102.
11. Fink G. Stress : concepts, cognition, emotion, and behavior; 2016.
12. Weitzner MA, Jacobsen PB, Wagner H, Jr., Friedland J, Cox C. The Caregiver Quality of Life Index-Cancer (CQOLC) scale: development and validation of an instrument to measure quality of life of the family caregiver of patients with cancer. Qual Life Res. 1999;8(1-2):55-63.
13. Khanjari S, Oskouie F, Langius-Eklöf A. Lower sense of coherence, negative religious coping, and disease severity as indicators of a decrease in quality of life in Iranian family caregivers of relatives with breast cancer during the first 6 months after diagnosis. Cancer Nurs. 2012;35(2):148-56
14. Vargün B. Men’s and women’s position in the family in the context of social gender roles. Journal of Human Sciences. 2016;13(2):2952-9.
15. Gonzalez-Robledo LM, MC González-Robledo MC, Caballero M, Nigenda G, Katz A, Knaul Marie F. Family support to women with breast cancer in Mexico: The male role. J Family Medicine and Care.2018;1(2): 1-2
16. Sajadian A, Heidari L, Mokhtari P. Investigating the Care Problems in Family Caregivers in Patients with Breast Cancer. ijbd. 2015;8(2):7-14.
17. Boatemaa Benson R, Cobbold B, Opoku Boamah E, Akuoko CP, Boateng D. Challenges, coping strategies, and social support among breast cancer patients in Ghana. J Advances in Public Health. 2020; Volume 2020 https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/4817932.
18. FALTERMAIER T. Why public health research needs qualitative approaches: Subjects and methods in change. Eur J Public Health. 1997;7(4):357-63.
19. Burkoski V, Yoon J, Hutchinson D, Solomon S, Collins BE. Experiences of Nurses Working in a Fully Digital Hospital: A Phenomenological Study. Nurs Leadersh (Tor Ont). 2019;32(Sp):72-85.
20. Van Manen M. Phenomenology of practice. J Phenomenology & Practice. 2007;1 (1), 11-30.
21. Zahavi D. The practice of phenomenology: The case of Max van Manen. Nurs Philos. 2020;21(2):e12276.
22. Duprez C, Vanlemmens L, Untas A, Antoine P, Lesur A, Loustalot C, et al. Emotional distress and subjective impact of the disease in young women with breast cancer and their spouses. Future Oncol. 2017;13(29):2667-80.
23. Çömez S, Karayurt Ö. We as Spouses Have Experienced a Real Disaster!: A Qualitative Study of Women With Breast Cancer and Their Spouses. Cancer Nurs. 2016;39(5):E19-28.
24. Hasson‐Ohayon I, Goldzweig G, Braun M, Galinsky D. Women with advanced breast cancer and their spouses: diversity of support and psychological distress. Psychooncology. 2010;19(11):1195-1204.
25. Glajchen M. The emerging role and needs of family caregivers in cancer care. J Support Oncol. 2004;2(2):145-55.
26. Grunfeld E, Coyle D, Whelan T, Clinch J, Reyno L, Earle CC, et al. Family caregiver burden: results of a longitudinal study of breast cancer patients and their principal caregivers. Cmaj. 2004;170(12):1795-801.
27. Zere E, Mandlhate C, Mbeeli T, Shangula K, Mutirua K, Kapenambili W. Equity in health care in Namibia: developing a needs-based resource allocation formula using principal components analysis. Int J Equity Health. 2007;6:3.
28. Neris RR, Anjos AC. [Experience of spouses of women with breast cancer: an integrative literature review]. Rev Esc Enferm USP. 2014;48(5):922-31.
29. Zahlis EH, Lewis FM. Coming to grips with breast cancer: the spouse's experience with his wife's first six months. J Psychosoc Oncol. 2010;28(1):79-97.
30. Girgis A, Lambert S, Johnson C, Waller A, Currow D. Physical, psychosocial, relationship, and economic burden of caring for people with cancer: a review. J Oncol Pract. 2013;9(4):197-202.
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 17 No 4 (2022) | |
| Section | Original Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/ijps.v17i4.10686 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Breast Cancer Coping Phenomenological Qualitative Research Spouses | ||
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How to Cite
1.
Jahani Sayad Noveiri M, Khodaveisi M, Shamsaei F, Vanaki Z, Tapak L. Identifying Important Challenges of Coping with Female Breast Cancer among Iranian Spouses: A Qualitative Study. Iran J Psychiatry. 2022;17(4):379-387.
