Contracting cancer and coping with it

The aim of this exploratory study was to provide information for use in improving the nursing care of cancer patients in Finland. This was done by describing the adaptation demands and the means used for coping with the situation. Material was assembled by open-ended questions in a questionnaire and by a semistructured interview centered on four themes. The material comprised 123 patients who had different types of cancer, were at various stages in the disease, and were living in or around a city in Finland. Interviews were conducted with 43 of these patients. The adaptation demands imposed by cancer were apparent at the time of observation of the first symptoms and reporting for treatment. Contracting cancer had come as a shock to 68% of the patients, and they had reacted by employing various defense mechanisms such as denial and rejection to cope with this stage. The results of the early feelings of the patients when they first heard that they had cancer were coded into three conceptual categories that followed each other: use of defense mechanisms, realization of feelings, and action aimed at management of the feelings caused by cancer. The subsequent methods of coping included emotional evaluation of their situation in life, comparison with earlier experiences and those of other cancer patients, and appeals for social welfare assistance.