Abstract

Introduction: Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the world, it has resulted in 8.8 million deaths; that is, one in six deaths are due to this disease, among the consequences of suffering from this disease, is the psychological impact that affects not only the person, but also his closest family and social environment. The experience of living with this disease and receiving chemotherapy treatment, generates multiple changes that the patient, most of the time, is not prepared to face; especially when care is provided at home.

Objective: Describe the experiences of cancer patients about home care, post-chemotherapy.

Methodology:   Qualitative   approach,   in-depth   interview   technique   and   participating   observation  were  used;  interviews  were  conducted  up  to  theoretical  saturation.  The  population  consisted  of  6  participants  with  different  diagnoses  of  cancer.  The  thematic  content  analysis  method  was  used  for  the  interpretation  of  the  information.  Results: The analysis  identified  399  live  codes,  27  subcategories  and  5  categories:  1.-  Experiences of  living  with  cancer  and  chemotherapy;  2.-  Home  care  experiences;  3.-  Family  care  experiences; 4.- Experiences of care of symptoms of chemotherapy; 5.- Experiences of care change of attitude in the face of chemotherapy.

Conclusion:  The  experiences  they  develop  throughout  this  process  are  emotional  and  physical changes; stop doing their daily activities and face family and economic challenges involving the acquisition of medicines and the side effects of chemotherapy; they also seek to know more about the disease itself and how to minimize its effects.

Keywords

maintenance chemotherapy, life change events, nursing, continuity of care, physical changes, family, psychological impact, muscles