The Effects Of Cancer On The Family

Cancer, as defined by the American Cancer Society, “Starts when cells in a part of the body start to grow out of control.” Many people have no idea the impact of cancer on not only the patient, but the family of the patient as well. There are many emotional, physical, and financial problems that entail a cancer diagnosis for a child. Emotionally, a parent must be prepared for anything that may come up in the duration of the treatment of the child. Physically, parents of a child with cancer are drained of all energy, and usually struggle to keep up with the needs of their child. Financially, families dealing with cancer are proven to spend thousands of dollars annually in an effort to rid their child of the cancer. Although all of these situations are difficult, the emotional aspect of cancer seems to have the largest effect on everyone involved in the child’s life. Emotionally, the family of a child diagnosed …show more content…
There are constantly things to fight about, whether the parents have a cancer-ridden child or not, but all reasons to fight are drastically increased when the parents are faced with the battle of cancer. Everything becomes a problem between parents when dealing with the cancer of their child, including money, emotions, and communication. Leann Reynolds explains the struggles of keeping a marriage together during the child’s illness, “There have been studies on the survival rate of marriages that are put to the test with a child’s serious illness.” Although not all couples with a sick child experience a downfall in their marriage because of the illness, all couples are presented with the stress that comes along with a serious illness. What differentiates these two types of couples is the way that they deal with the stress. Communication with each other is a way for these couples to alleviate the stress induced by this