Experiences of Women Diagnosed With Cancer During Pregnancy

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to find out what women diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy experienced in their cancer treatment and childcare.

Methods: Narrative analysis was conducted in March-July, 2023 after interviewing two women who had been diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy.

Results: The following themes (in quotation marks) were identified. Ms. A underwent anticancer drug therapy during her pregnancy for breast cancer and “kept being worried about her fetus, feeling anxiety, sense of being alienated and loneliness.” After giving birth, she “struggled every day and barely managed to take care of her baby while continuing hospital visits for cancer treatment.” After several years, she “is happily enjoying ordinary daily life, which she appreciates.” Ms. B underwent surgery during her pregnancy for a soft tissue tumor. She “felt anxious, alienated, and lonely, and was more worried about whether she would be able to give birth to her baby than about her own cancer.” She did not feel well after giving birth and she “could only manage daily care of her baby, neglecting her own body as secondary importance,” but gradually began to “pay attention to her own life while cherishing time with her baby.”

Conclusion: It is extremely difficult to assume the role of mother, including breast feeding and childcare, while at the same time being an outpatient with poor physical and mental condition due to cancer treatment. A support system needs to be established for such women and their families.