Cancer within marriage: Social support and life changes reported by patients, spouses, and couples experiencing cancer.

Despite the increasing recognition of the family as the social unit facing illness, the experience of couples facing cancer is largely absent in the literature. The purpose of this study was to examine social support and life changes reported by cancer patients and their spouses. Special consideration was given to the couple as the unit of analysis. Fifty-seven adult patients with leukemia or lymphoma and their spouses participated in the study. Quantitative data were obtained through self-report questionnaires and qualitative data were obtained through face-to-face interviews with a sub-sample of couples. Mean age in both populations was 52 years, and mean time since diagnosis was 6 years. Fourteen percent of the couples reported the patient as cured. Spouses reported significantly more years of education than did patients. Findings indicated that spouses reported receiving significantly less social support than did patients. Patients and spouses did not differ significantly in their perception of life change as better, same, or worse since the illness. However, both populations reported positive changes in mental health, activism, and social relationships. There was no significant relationship between social support and life change for the patient population, whereas there was a significant positive relationship between social support and life change for spouses. The total amount of support a couple reported receiving had a significant positive relationship with the couple's life change. The difference in support reported by patient and spouse within a couple had a significant negative relationship with the couple's life change. In conclusion, the findings clearly suggest some important differences between patients' and spouses' psychosocial experiences with cancer. The presence of a serious illness in one spouse has important implications for both spouses. A discussion regarding further methodological considerations for couple research was presented.PhDSociologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/103202/1/9308298.pdfDescription of 9308298.pdf : Restricted to UM users only