The lived experience of women with cancer: Phenomenological findings expressed through poetry

Abstract

Cancer rates for Canadian women between the ages of 22 and 44 are increasing. Improved survival times and more treatment choices, however, create new challenges. Little research has been done to uncover the lived experience of long-term survival. This pilot study describes the meaning of living with cancer for three Canadian women who were diagnosed more than four years ago. The process of inquiry was Giorgi’s descriptive phenomenological method for analysis-synthesis of a general structural description (the meaning of the experience). The findings have been interpreted creatively through poetry in an effort to enhance understanding of the experience of living with cancer. Each section of the poem is discussed in relation to the literature to encourage nurses and other health professionals to consider the importance of understanding patients’ lived experiences and the meanings they ascribe, in order to provide quality, holistic, and individualized care.