The phenomenon of cancer in the elderly life

Abstract

This study aimed to reveal the meaning attributed to cancer in the elder individuals’ life, using the qualitative methodology guided by phenomenology, based on the sensitive look of Maurice Merleau-Ponty. The subjects were eight elderly individuals undergoing chemotherapy. The instrument used was the half-structuralized interview. Discourse analysis included the reading of the descriptions as a whole, the detection of the units of meaning, synthesis and interpretation. The statements were grouped into categories: Being old with cancer and Ambiguities in coping with cancer, which revealed that the cancer is seen with acceptance, resignation and fear. Elderly people said to live very well with the disease, however contradictions were observed, deciphering the suffering faced by cancer in their lives. It was clear, therefore, the multiplicity of feelings that permeate the life-world those cancer patients, requiring a more humanized nursing care.