CANCER CAREGIVERS

A study from the Journal of Family Nursing (JFN, November, 1998 Vol.4, Issue 4) provides a glimpse into the life of a cancer caregiver. This study examined caregiver characteristics and needs through a questionnaire administered to 750 cancer caregivers who participated in the University of Pennsylvania Family Caregiver Cancer Education Program.

Who Are the Caregivers

Are you taking care of a loved one with cancer? You are not alone. More than 1.3 million cases of cancer are diagnosed each year. Studies suggest that at least 50 percent of those diagnosed with cancer will be cared for by someone in their immediate family.

Who are the cancer caregivers?

82 percent are female
71 percent are married
61 percent have been providing care for less than six months
54 percent live with the patient for whom they are caring
47 percent are more than 50 years old
36 percent reported caregiving took more than 40 hours of time per week

A Day in the Life of a Cancer Caregiver

What don’t you do? As a cancer caregiver, you spend your days preparing meals, cleaning, providing transportation, talking to health care providers, administering medication, and making sure their loved one gets everything they need. Cancer caregivers find the time to do it all…everything but take care of themselves.

Consequences of Cancer Caregiving

The Journal of Family Nursing study detailed the impact of providing care on cancer caregivers’ physical, emotional, and financial health. The results are staggering, and indicate that the caregiver needs to take care of his or herself.

Physical

70 percent reported taking between 1 and 10 medications per day
62 percent said their own health had suffered as a result of caregiving
25 percent reported having significant physical limitations of their own

Emotional

85 percent reported that they resented having to provide care
70 percent said their families were not working well together
54 percent visited friends and family less since assuming their caregiving role
35 percent said they were overwhelmed by their caregiving role
97 percent said their roles were important
81 percent stated that they wanted to provide care and could not live with themselves if they did not assume caregiving responsibilities

Financial

46 percent reported inadequate financial resources
Caregivers frequently missed as many workdays as those patients for whom they were caring, according to a survey conducted by the Fatigue Coalition (a multidisciplinary group of medical practitioners, researchers and Patient advocates), and funded by Ortho Biotech Products, L.P.

The Benefits of Caregiver Support Systems

Evidence shows that community-based education and support for caregivers may help relieve the stresses associated with providing care for a loved one with cancer.

In fact, caregivers who participated in, and evaluated the University of Pennsylvania program, reported significant increases in the degree to which they felt informed about and confident in their ability to provide care.

If you are a caregiver of a loved one with cancer, be sure to care for yourself. You are too important to suffer stress-related illness.

Members' Comments

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Feeling Sad

cj2007 | September 7, 2007 | 7:13 PM

I am a caregiver for my mother-in-law, who was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and my father-in-law who has dementia. Even though there are other family members involved, I am the one who deals with their medical care and makes the decisions. I feel alot of responsiblity and pressure. My mother-in-law has been ill since Oct. and even though they ran all kinds of tests, she wasn't diagnosed until this month. I feel as though I failed somehow. Today she asked me how bad the situation is and I explained it to her. One of the hardest things I have ever had to do. Right now I feel sad because I don't have anyone to talk to. I try to stay strong for the rest of them as it is their mother we're talking about. My husband is very caring and gets the burden off of me when he sees I need a break. But he is having a hard time with this too and I want to comfort him. I don't feel its fair to put my thoughts, fears and sadness on them. Thanks for giving me a place to do that.

Cancer doesn't come with a manual

sker | June 11, 2007 | 4:09 AM

People say that babies don't come with a manual, it is learn as you go. And, I am finding, that is also true of cancer. I am not new to "care-giving". Every decent person who has been a parent, spouse, child or sibling in a family has, at some time, sacrificed their own desires for the needs of loved ones.

When we have a baby, we don't get a "manual", but we usually get at least 9 months to mentally and physically prepare for the changes. And, it is a positive experience, though time and resourse intensive.

Nothing that I have ever done in my life could have prepared me for the "kick in the stomach" feeling that my husband and I both felt when the colon cancer was first diagnosed a month ago. Since then, it has been one disappointing test result after another. Surgery has been scheduled and canceled, Radiation and Chemo have been scheduled and canceled. Today, a month and three days later, we are finally getting his first treatment, a combination of folfox and avistan, that the Oncologist has told us has a 70% chance of reducing or eliminating the tumors and cancer cells, albeit with a high risk of recurrence.

Dennis was symptom free when he had his first colonoscopy. In hindsight, I know we overlooked some things....he had become increasingly tired and sleeping during the day....but we thought it was "out-of-shape" -- and vowed to go to the gym. He was having intermittent pains in his upper abdomen...at one time I suggested he get his gall bladder checked. But we had no idea this could be cancer. Bowel problems seemed a "part of aging" too, as there was not at that time, any bleeding.

I am overwhelmed, with sadness, responsibility, concern for my husband's comfort, fear of the known and the unknown, and my own tiredness and sickness as I am a 58 year old female with my own set of health problems and a full-time job to maintain, since our insurance is through my work and we need my income.

Hopefully, I will find some strength and support from this website. I don't sleep much....and I am writing this at 3:25 am. Today,for Dennis, the healing starts; finally, my sweet husband will get some treatment for this disease. Help us please, to find some strength, and some relief from the pain, physical and emotional .