Trajectories of resilience in advanced cancer caregiving.

Sophie Opsomer

Keywords: resilience, mental wellbeing, mental distress, qualitative study, ideal-type, advanced cancer caregiving

Background:

Research on resilience in advanced cancer caregiving often explores how resilience-promoting resources and coping strategies interact. However, the emergence of resilience and distress trajectories in individuals facing a loved one's cancer diagnosis remains unexamined.

Research questions:

- What different types of resilience trajectories can be distinguished in partners of patients diagnosed with advanced cancer?
- How are resilience-promoting resources involved in the development of these trajectories?

Method:

This study utilized ideal-type analysis to construct typologies from qualitative data. Over three years, fifty-four interviews were conducted with seventeen partners of patients recently diagnosed with advanced cancer, identifying trajectories of resilience and distress.

Results:

Six distinct trajectories emerged: three reflecting resilience (rapidly adapting resilience, gradually adapting resilience, and slowly adapting resilience) and three indicating less optimal adjustment (continuing distress, delayed distress, and frozen disconnection). These trajectories were influenced by the individual characteristics of partners, the behavior of their support networks, and the interactions between the two.

Conclusions:

Differentiating these trajectories enhances our understanding of resilience in adversity and aids healthcare professionals in optimizing support for partners of patients diagnosed with cancer.

Points for discussion:

What should a communication tool meet to detect these pathways early?

Do you recognize these trajectories in other situations or in caregivers for patients other than advanced cancer patients?

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