A MODEST IMPACT OF CANCER ON YOUNG ADULT CAREGIVERS’ EDUCATIONAL PLANS?

Abstract

In the November 2005 issue of the Journal, Levine et al.1 underlined the need for qualitative studies to elucidate the impact of caregiving on young adults (aged 18 to 25 years) who become natural caregivers for family members or friends. They also asked for additional specific research on the impact of caregiving on the educational plans of these young caregivers. As part of a larger study on the impact of cancer in a sample that included a broad range of informal caregivers (e.g., children, parents, friends), we conducted 3 in-depth interviews with young caregivers. The caregivers were recruited at a hospital and gave consent to be extensively interviewed by an experienced sociologist (A.C.). They were young women students (aged 18, 20, and 24 years old) living with mothers who were being treated for breast cancer. The young women reported that, particularly at the time the mother’s cancer was diagnosed, their thoughts were consumed by their mothers’ disease (“When you’re outside, you wonder what’s going on at home, if there are no problems; when you‘re in class, it is the same”). Insomnia related to worry and the numerous tasks involved in maintaining the household often caused fatigue. The women frequently missed classes because they were caring for their mothers either at home or at the hospital. Despite their difficulty in concentrating, their fatigue, and their missed classes, these young adult caregivers reported that they did as well in school as they had before their mothers’ illness or, paradoxically, even better. Giving up social activities and staying at home more frequently to support their mothers led them to spend more time studying (“As I’m always at home, I do the housework and I study”). The unpredictability of caregiving tasks may nevertheless have important repercussions on education; for example, one daughter missed an examination to care for her mother. These 3 young adult caregivers reported a modest impact of their caregiving role on their educational life. Larger and longitudinal studies may confirm this impression and reveal repercussions of caregiving during young adulthood in later professional life.