Coping with stigma: the experiences of Chinese patients living with lung cancer

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To describe the experiences of stigma and coping strategies among patients with lung cancer in China. RESEARCH APPROACH: Qualitative. SETTING: The oncology department at Liaocheng Peoples Hospital. PARTICIPANTS: A purposive sample of 17 patients experiencing stigma related to lung cancer voluntarily participated in data collection. METHODOLOGIC APPROACH: Individual, semistructured qualitative interviews were chosen. Participants completed about a 30-min focused interview. Exploratory qualitative approach guided data analysis. FINDINGS: Three main thematic elements emerged from the interview data:(1) sources of stigma, such as smoking, decreased ability to work, difficulties caring for self and family, damage to self-image, and cough and expectoration; (2) experiences of stigma, including feelings of stigma, remorse, loss of dignity, uselessness, social isolation, perceived exclusion, rejection, and discrimination; and (3) coping strategies, such as concealing the fact of sickness, reducing social activities, seeking medical assistance, adhering to treatment, and disclosing dissatisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate the presence of perceived stigma among patients with lung cancer. Future work should address the stigma associated with lung cancer and its related factors. INTERPRETATION: As point-of-care providers, staff nurses are well positioned to develop effective interventions to help patients deal with stigma and to accomplish the goal of providing holistic nursing care.