Abstract:
The word "cancer" has different meanings for different people. In general, it is
synonymous with fatality, either imminent or in the forseeable future. How each person
perceives and attributes meaning to this personal experience, varies according to
idiosyncratic factors. These factors are constituted by each individual's unique internal
make up and by external influences and it is the combination of the multiplicity of
factors that bring about the personal attributions of meaning for each individual.
The thesis examines the attributions of meaning of a sample of 42 women with breast
cancer, through administration of a semi-structured interview and questionnaire, with
follow up interviews. The theoretical concepts which are explored, examine the shift
away from the traditional, Newtonian, linear-causal, neutral observer model (as in the
traditional medical model), towards an ecosystemic, a-causal, contextual, holistic
stance.
Ecosystemic thinking is utilised in this research work, and this way of thinking is
applied to the findings. In addition, a qualitative, descriptive approach is adopted, so
that an in depth emphasis rather than a quantitative, empirical view of the patients in the
sample, is undertaken. The applied questionaire focuses on the patient's experience of
cancer diagnosis, with more specific reference to the side effects of the chemotherapy.
The emphasis is towards the issue of anticipatory nausea and emesis and the possible
use of hypnosis in relation to these effects. Each patient's attribution of meaning to
these aspects forms the core of the thesis.
The study discloses the wide variety of attributions of meaning held by different women
in a similar predicament towards different aspects of that predicament. Concomitantly,
the study highlights the limitations of the traditional, medical model which contribute to
diminishing the personal understanding of each patient, and the impact of this on both
treatment and outcome for each patient.
