Changes over time: a study of family bereavement following childhood cancer.

A longitudinal follow-up study which examined changes in 48 families over time (7-9 years) following a death of a child with cancer was conducted. The loss of a child required individual reorganization and adjustments within the family system. Changes in marital status and/or the addition of other children required adjustment in the relationships of family members. Some of the changes were developmental in nature while others, according to the informants, were directly related to the death of the child.