Author Affiliations: BC Cancer (Dr Lee); and School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia (Drs Lee, Gotay, and Kazanjian), Vancouver; School of Nursing, Trinity Western University (Dr Sawatzky), Langley; and Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcome Sciences, St Paul's Hospital (Dr Sawatzky), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Cancer Nurs. 2019 Nov/Dec;42(6):439-447. doi: 10.1097/NCC.0000000000000620.
Cancer is a family disease, affecting the individual patient and the family. For Chinese patients and their families in Canada, adjusting to cancer may be particularly distressing when culture and language are not congruent with the mainstream model of care delivery.
In view of the limited research on the cancer experience of Chinese families, this study aims to examine the interrelatedness of patients and family caregivers' distress among a Chinese-speaking cancer population in Canada.
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 10 Chinese-speaking cancer patients and 6 family caregivers. Qualitative analysis of the interview data was conducted to construct cross-cutting themes regarding the experiences of distress after a cancer diagnosis.
Four overarching themes emerged from the analysis: (1) misconception about cancer, (2) tensions in disclosure, (3) patient and family caregiver distress, and (4) concealing emotion in patient and family caregiver. Notably, the interrelatedness of patients and family caregivers' distress was highlighted, as patients and family caregivers both sought to regulate their own emotions to protect one another's mental well-being.
The study provides insights into the distress of living with cancer and the impact on family relationships. Understanding the patients and family members' cultural and social contexts also provides the foundation for patient- and family-centered care.
Healthcare professionals can provide culturally appropriate care by recognizing the needs, values, and beliefs of cancer patients and their families. Furthermore, the patient-family-caregiver dyad needs to be considered as the unit of care.
癌症是一种家族性疾病，影响着个体患者及其家庭。对于在加拿大的中国患者及其家庭而言，当文化和语言与主流的医疗服务模式不相符时，适应癌症可能会特别痛苦。
鉴于针对中国家庭癌症经历的研究有限，本研究旨在考察加拿大讲中文的癌症患者群体中患者和家庭照顾者困扰的相关性。
采用目的抽样法对 10 名讲中文的癌症患者和 6 名家庭照顾者进行半结构式访谈。对访谈数据进行定性分析，构建有关癌症诊断后困扰经历的交叉主题。
分析得出 4 个总体主题：（1）对癌症的误解；（2）披露的紧张局面；（3）患者和家庭照顾者的困扰；（4）患者和家庭照顾者掩饰情绪。值得注意的是，患者和家庭照顾者困扰的相关性得到了强调，因为患者和家庭照顾者都试图调节自己的情绪以保护彼此的心理健康。
本研究深入了解了癌症患者的困扰及其对家庭关系的影响。了解患者及其家庭成员的文化和社会背景也为以患者和家庭为中心的护理提供了基础。
医疗保健专业人员可以通过识别癌症患者及其家庭的需求、价值观和信仰，提供文化上适宜的护理。此外，需要将患者-家庭-照顾者三方视为护理的单位。
