Beliefs about Childhood Cancer: Perceptions of Survivors and Mothers
Main Article Content
Abstract
Illness beliefs refers to mental schemes that people construct from their direct or indirect experience. Such beliefs are related to their health behaviour and self-regulation. In childhood cancer survivors, their beliefs help us to understand their behaviour in the follow-up treatment. The purpose was to examine the beliefs about childhood cancer in 27 young adults’ survivors and 49 mothers, who answered sociodemographic and illness perception questionnaires in an online website. Results showed that mothers perceived childhood cancer as chronic disease with cyclical symptoms, with consequences and emotional representations more negative than survivals. Also, mothers reported understanding about the disease and believing in personal and treatment control at a higher level than survivors. It is concluded that the fact that survivors perceived childhood cancer in a more positive way indicate a new significance and a positive adaptive to experience.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright to articles published in The Journal Of Psychology: Theory and Practice belongs to the authors, who grant Mackenzie Presbyterian University the not exclusive rights to publish the content.
References
American Cancer Society (2017a). Do we know what causes childhood leucemia? Recuperado em 22 junho, 2017, de https://www.cancer.org/cancer/leukemiain-children/causes-risks-prevention/what-causes.html
American Cancer Society (2017b). Risk factors and causes of childhood cancer. Recuperado em 22, 2017, de https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-in-children/risk- -factors-and-causes.html
Ashford, N., Bauman, B., Brown, H., Clapp, R., Finkel, A., Gee, D., Hattis, D., Martuzzi, M., Sasco, A., & Sass, J. (2015). Cancer risk: role of environment. Science, 347(6223), 727–732.
Bemis, H., Yarboi, J., Gerhardt, C. A., Vannatta, K., Desjardins, L., Murphy, L. K., & Compas, B. E. (2015). Childhood cancer in context: sociodemographic factors, stress, and psychological distress among mothers and children. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 40(8), 733–743. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsv024
Castro, E. K. de, Aretz, M., Lawrenz, P., Romeiro, F. B., & Haas, S. A. (2015). Illness perceptions in Brazilian women with cervical cancer, women with precursory lesions and healthy women. Psicooncología, 10(2-3), 417–423. doi:10.5209/rev
Castro, E. K. de, Armiliato, M. J., Vital, L., Peloso, F., & Souza, M. A. de (2017). Mental health and childhood cancer: the relationship between PTSD symptoms in survivors and mother. Revista Brasileira de Psicoterapia, 19(2), 5–16.
Castro, E. K., Peuker, A. C., Lawrenz, P., & Figueiras, M. J. (2015). Illness perception, knowledge and self-care about cervical cancer. Psicologia: Reflexão e Crítica, 28(3), 483–489. doi:10.1590/1678-7153.201528307
Clanton, N. R., Klosky, J. L., Li, C., Jain, N., Srivastava, D. K., Mulrooney, D., ... Krull, K. R. (2011). Fatigue, vitality, sleep, and neurocognitive functioning in adult survivors of childhood cancer: a report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. Cancer, 117(11), 2559–2568. doi:10.1002/cncr.25797
Figueiras, M. J., & Alves, N. C. (2007). Lay perceptions of serious illnesses: an adapted version of the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R) for healthy people. Psychology & Health, 22(2), 143–158. doi:10.1080/14768320600774462
Hosoda, T. (2014). The impact of childhood cancer on family functioning: a review. Graduate Student Journal of Psychology, 15, 18–30. Recuperado em 15 setembro, 2017, de http://www.tc.columbia.edu/publications/gsjp/gsjp-volumes-archive/ 36303_2hosoda.pdf
Howard Sharp, K., Rowe, A., Russel, K., Long, A., & Phipps, S. (2015). Predictors of psychological functioning in children with cancer: disposition and cumulative life stressors. Psycho-Oncology, 24, 779–786. doi:10.1002/pon.3643
Instituto Nacional de Câncer José Alencar Gomes da Silva – INCA (2018). Câncer infantil. Recuperado em 5 junho, 2017, de http://www2.inca.gov.br/wps/wcm/ connect/tiposdecancer/site/home/infantil
Juth, V., Silver, R. C., & Sender, L. (2015). The shared experience of adolescent and young adult cancer patients and their caregivers. Psycho-Oncology, 24(12), 1746–1753. doi:10.1002/pon.3785
Lawrenz, P., Peuker, A. C. W. B., & Castro, E. K. de (2016). Illness Perception and Indicators of PTSD in Mothers of Childhood Cancer Survivors. Trends in Psychology, 24(51), 439–450. doi:10.9788/TP2016.2-03En
Leventhal, H., Leventhal, E. A., & Breland, J. Y. (2011). Cognitive science speaks to the “Common-Sense” of chronic illness management. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 41(2), 152–163. doi:10.1007/s12160-010-9246-9
Leventhal, H., Nerenz, D. L., & Steele, D. J. (1984). Illness representation and coping with health threats. In A. Baum, S. E. Taylor, & J. E. Singer (Eds.), Handbook of psychology and health (pp. 219–252).
Moss-Morris, R., Weinman, J., Petrie, K., Horne, R., Cameron, L., & Buick, D. (2002). The Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R). Psychology & Health, 17(1), 1–16. doi:10.1080/08870440290001494
Myers, L. B. (2010). The importance of repressive coping style: findings from 30 years of research. Anxiety, Stress & Coping, 23(1), 3–1. doi:10.1080/10615800903 366945
Pai, A. L. H., Greenley, R. N., Lewandowski, A., Drotar, D., Youngstrom, E., & Peterson, C. C. (2007). A meta-analytic review of the influence of pediatric cancer on parent and family functioning. Journal of Family Psychology, 21(3), 407–415. doi:10.1037/0893-3200.21.3.407
Peuker, A. C., Armiliato, M. J., Souza, L. V., & Castro, E. K. (2015). Causal attribution to cervical cancer. Psicooncología, 12(2-3), 249–257. doi:10.5209/rev
Peuker, A. C., Armiliato, M. J., Vital de Souza, L., & Kern de Castro, E. (2016). Causal attribution to cervical cancer. Psicooncología, 12(2-3), 249–257. doi:10.5209/rev_PSIC.2015.v12.n2-3.51007
Phillips, L. A., Leventhal, H., & Leventhal, E. A. (2012). Physicians communication of the common-sense self-regulation model results in greater reported adherence than physicians’ use of interpersonal skills. British Journal of Health Psychology, 17(2), 244–257. doi:10.1111/j.2044-8287.2011.02035.x
Wakefield, C. E., McLoone, J., Goodenough, B., Lenthen, K., Cairns, D. R., & Cohn, R. J. (2010). The psychosocial impact of completing childhood cancer treatment: a systematic review of the literature. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 35(3), 262–274. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsp056
Wengenroth, L., Rueegg, C. S., Michel, G., Gianinazzi, M. E., S, E., Von Der Weid, N. X., ... & Kuehni, C. E. (2015). Concentratio, working speed and memory: cognitive problems in young childhood cancer survivors and their siblings. Pediatric Blood Cancer, 62(5), 875–882. doi:10.1002/pbc
Wenninger, K., Helmes, A., Bengel, J., Lauten, M., Völkel, S., & Niemeyer, C. M. (2013). Coping in long-term survivors of childhood cancer: relations to psychological distress. Psycho-Oncology, 22(4), 854–861. doi:10.1002/pon.3073