Abstract
ABSTRACT Purpose: This study aims to explore how agency is constructed in everyday life with cancer in relation to daily activities and habits. Agency is approached as a key element of daily life existence, and it is constructed in terms of “acting in the world”, self-behaviour, changing routines, identity expectations and life course. Methods: The study is based on a social constructionist approach and the data of 32 participants were gathered through a public call for narratives on “everyday life with breast and prostate cancer” in Finland in 2009. The analysis was conducted by utilizing a discursive research approach and coding. Results: Three categories of agency were identified: stable—where agency continues fluently after cancer; fragile—where the ability to take care of daily activities has deteriorated; and recreated—where living with cancer adapts or creates a new basis for daily living. Conclusions: The findings of the study suggest that everyday life activities and habits define and (de)construct agency, and that these constructions are tightly linked to the ill person’s overall life situation, physical abilities and cultural context. Having cancer can create new challenges to agency in daily life but does not suppress agency.
Highlights
Statistics relating to the survival rates of cancer patients in the period 2014–2016 in Finland show that 91% of women with breast cancer and 93% of men with prostate cancer were still alive five years after their diagnosis (Finnish Cancer Registry, 2018)
An unemployed man in his 60s who was living with his spouse, was treated with hormones and radiotherapy a year before writing his narrative. He describes the onset of his prostate cancer: After I received the letter of diagnosis, for a couple of days I felt my life was over
This study shows that agency can be constructed as recreated if daily life begins to demand new ways of being
Summary
Statistics relating to the survival rates of cancer patients in the period 2014–2016 in Finland show that 91% of women with breast cancer and 93% of men with prostate cancer were still alive five years after their diagnosis (Finnish Cancer Registry, 2018). These high survival rates support the fact that people diagnosed with cancer live the majority of their lives outside of the medical or health care environment. Because of the controversy over what patients get and what they need, it is important to study their everyday lives alongside the medical setting
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
