A cancer diagnosis impacts the whole family. Providing care and support, dealing with stress and grief, managing finances and assuming a new role in the family can prove challenging for family members according to the American Cancer Society. Every family copes differently, but all families must go through a learning process to define the steps necessary to manage the cancer diagnosis of a loved one. The primary caregiver for the patient is most affected, but other family members also share in the stress.
Shock
When a family member receives a diagnosis of cancer, the first feeling is shock that often leads to fear. Fear that the individual with cancer will die often leaves family members in shock that cancer has affected someone in their family. During this initial period of diagnosis and immediate reaction, family members may cry, become angry and children may act out.
Anxiety
The patient's role in the family affects the type of anxiety and worry that family members may display. If the primary breadwinner is the patient, anxieties may revolve around financial matters. When the mother of the family receives the cancer diagnosis, the family may struggle with how the management of the household will continue. In a single parent household, which may not include a strong support system and dependence on others may become a cause of anxiety for the patient. The caregiver may also experience high anxiety related to providing difficult home care for the patient.
Emotional Stress
A cancer diagnosis can prove emotionally exhausting for the family. As the patient transitions through the cancer diagnosis, the family experiences sadness and emotional stress based on how well the patient responds to treatment. If the patient is not doing well, the stress level increases leading to sadness at the potential loss of the loved one. Tamayo and colleagues, in a study published in the Oncology Nursing Forum, say that caregivers struggle with the burden of caring for the patient and the rest of the family.
Helplessness
Families may feel helpless during the cancer diagnosis of a loved one. The inability to make things better, not being able to spend enough time with the patient, or struggling to adjust to the potential loss of a family member requires a strong support network to talk about feelings.
Financial Stress
Paying routine household bills, especially if the primary breadwinner cannot work, creates stress for the family. The cost of cancer treatment, even with health insurance, becomes very expensive. High insurance deductibles and co-pays create financial stress for the family.
Anger
According to the American Cancer Society, anger is a common emotion when cancer affects a family. Anger at the patient who got sick, at other family members who may not be taking on their fair share of responsibility or at the conditions caused by the patient's diagnosis and treatment often occurs.
Grief
Grief comes in several forms. The loss of the patient's health, the loss of the relationship the family had before the patient's diagnosis or the death of the patient all cause grief in the family.
References
- Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing: Adolescents' and Parents' Experiences of Managing the Psychosocial Impact of Appearance Change During Cancer Treatment
- Oncology Nursing Forum: Caring for the Caregiver
- Psychooncology: Psychosocial adjustment of siblings of children with cancer: a systematic review
