Cancer and the Family Life Cycle A Practitioner's Guide

9781583910160

1583910166

Not just a disease of the individual, cancer affects the entire family system. With three out of four families likely to experience some form of cancer, more and more families are in need of therapeutic assistance in dealing with long-term treatment regimens, treatment side effects, rehabilitation, loss, and survival concerns. Drawing perspectives from medical oncology, psychological oncology, and health psychology, Cancer and the Family Life Cycle is a practitioner's guide to assisting families of all stages through the clinical course of cancer. The book explores diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, survivorship, recurrence, and the terminal phase, and for each phase, addresses concerns specific to families in each of the six stages of the family life cycle. Each chapter covers medical variables and current psychological literature and illustrates their clinical application through case studies that follow six families through their experience with cancer. Written and organised to be straightforward and accessible, Cancer and the Family Life Cycle is an essential resource for psychologists, therapists, counsellors, social workers, and all other professionals who seek to help families as they adapt to cancer.