by Kathy Boltz, PhD
Originally published at oncologynurseadvisor.com on May 12th, 2014. A study consisting of lung cancer patients, primarily smokers 51 to 79 years old, is shedding more light on the stigma often felt by these patients, the emotional toll it can have, and how health providers can help. “It's eye opening when a patient says to you that they feel like lung cancer ‘just gets shoved under the rug,'” said Rebecca Lehto, PhD, RN, OCN, who led the project and is an assistant professor with the College of Nursing at Michigan State University in East Lansing. “Patients in one of the focus groups actually associated lung cancer with a black ribbon.” Previous research has shown that lung cancer carries a stigma. Because lung cancer is primarily linked to smoking behaviors, the public's opinion of the disease can often be judgmental. Today, lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death globally. Yet Lehto explained that up to 25% of lung cancer patients worldwide have never smoked. The World Health Organization has identified air pollution as a cause, and genetics also have been associated with the disease. “No matter how a patient gets lung cancer, it shouldn't affect the care they receive or the role empathy should play,” she said. Her study was published in the European Journal of Oncology Nursing (2014; doi:10.1016/j.ejon.2014.02.003). Lehto's goal is to raise awareness among health care providers about the additional burden stigma places on patients and develop patient care strategies that strengthen coping skills and symptom management. “Understanding a disease from the patient's perspective is essential to providing the best medical care to anyone,” she said. The study evaluated feedback from four focus groups, which is a format that Lehto suggests is uncommon in this particular area of research. “There've been several studies examining lung cancer stigma, but most have relied on survey data” she said. “Most of the groups in this study had three to four people participating and relied on a group dynamic to foster discussion. The sessions actually appeared quite therapeutic … acting more like a peer group.” Lehto's key findings showed participants expressing guilt, self-blame, anger, regret, and alienation relative to family and societal interactions. Yet, many also discussed feeling uncomfortable with their health care providers and even feared their care might be negatively affected because of their smoking background. Although she admits more research is needed with larger, more diverse patient samples, Lehto said her findings could help substantiate the patient perspective on a critical issue that is of sociological importance. Lehto hopes the results will encourage health care providers to examine their own perceptions about lung cancer stigma and be more aware of how it impacts the patient. “Arming providers with rich, contextual information may help us put biases aside and heighten empathy and understanding,” she said. “That would be a step in the right direction.”
2 Comments
5/14/2014 04:47:41 am
Totally agree with the article and it is getting worse, now some people are accused of being sick, a tendency to hold people responsible for their health problem because they have bad life style.
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Annie MacDonald Warren
5/25/2014 01:08:52 pm
My 92 year old mother-in-law screamed at me & shook her finger at me while telling me "it was my own fault that I was dying from lung cancer because I smoked"! I told her where to go & refused to give her the gratitude of me dying ... she died last year & I am still here! Still fighting!! Too many other variables go into lung cancer than just smoking!
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