Robert Bennett, PhD, PPCNP-BC, CPNP-AC, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, discusses a mixed-methods study aiming to determine symbols of hope as described by Hispanic adolescent and young adult survivors of cancer.

These data were first presented at the annual Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) Congress.

Transcript:

I am Dr Robert Bennett, and I'm a nurse scientist at the Mayo Clinic Arizona. 

What was the rationale for this study?

The rationale for doing this study is that the concept of hope seems to be understudied in adolescents and young adults (AYA) living with cancer, especially more so among a AYAs who are from historically marginalized communities. For this study, we decided to make our research question, how do AYAs who are living with advanced cancer conceptualize hope? 

What were the methods of this study?

We used Husserlian phenomenology, which means that we were seeking out participants lived experiences in their own words, where participants are the teachers and we are their students. We asked them to guide us through their lived experiences with cancer treatment and cancer survivorship. And as an adjunct with that, we also asked them to draw their experiences on the screen and narrate for us what the meanings of their drawings were. We were triangulating the qualitative interview methods with data from their drawings.

What were the results from the study?

To analyze our data, we basically went through a thematic analysis process and went back and forth between 2 of us investigators to achieve a final set of themes and get consensus. 

We identified 3 themes from the written narratives that participants composed and those were “spirituality,” “in this together,” and “dark moments.” We also asked a creative arts therapist who had not been part of the original analysis if she could do an analysis of participants' drawings. And the themes that she identified were “reliable companionship,” “religious beliefs,” and “safe place and containment.” And to our surprised, there was significant overlap between the themes from the written narratives and the drawings.

How can these findings inform APPs’ management of patients?

For the theme of spirituality, we're finding that this was something that we didn't even specifically ask about, but it emerged out of 100% of participants narratives. This can be something that is essential for culturally congruent care among samples of Hispanic adolescents and young adults. Although we didn't ask about spirituality, our participants wanted to talk about it. Perhaps this means that in the future, clinicians can proactively ask if they want to talk about spirituality or what spirituality means to them in their treatment and cancer survivorship. 

One of the other themes of “in this together” was quite informative because this told us that patients' families are highly instrumental for their recovery and during their cancer survivorship, that that family support is monumentally important. 

And then one of the other themes was “dark moments,” and that participants acknowledged that they didn't always feel hopeful. Sometimes they experienced really dark moments where they considered, what if I don't survive this? What if this was in some way my fault that I was diagnosed with cancer? And they talked about how they overcame those transient moments and found light on the other end of it.

What do you think future research in this area should focus on?

There’s a couple different ways that future research can carry this work forward. I think intentionally asking about the role of spirituality and family presence in the lives of AYAs who are living with cancer, I think that is something that can yield highly informative data and can also support culturally congruent care. And also noting that there was significant overlap between the written themes and the visual themes in the data. I think drawing is something that can be used as an adjunctive tool aside from verbal interviewing. 

Is there anything else you would like to add about this study?

I think the alignment between the written and visual data highlights the importance of spirituality and social support for staying hopeful during cancer survivorship, and also demonstrates these concepts transcend not only spoken words, but language too. This supports the need to perform additional research about the potentially protective value of social support and spirituality among Hispanic AYA cancer survivors.

Source:

Bennett R, Coats H, Tofthagen C, and Ferguson V. Symbols of hope in Hispanic adolescent and young adult cancer survivors. Presented at the ONS Congress. April 10-13, 2025; Denver, CO.