Psychological long-term coping with experience of disease and treatment in childhood cancer survivors

Childhood cancer, although cured, may have long-term psychological consequences for the adult survivor. The outcome of patients' coping with the illness and treatment experience was assessed in relation to a theoretical model describing optimal long-term coping with a potential psychic trauma of this nature. Thirty young adult childhood cancer survivors were studied. The average age at diagnosis was 8 years, and at evaluation 22 years. The average time since diagnosis was 13 years. The evaluations of coping were carried out independently by two psychologists, who rated material from semistructured in-depth interviews. By statistical cluster analysis three clusters were produced that could be interpreted as exhibiting ''good'', ''intermediate'' and ''poor'' coping, containing 40, 33, and 27%, respectively, of the total group. Overall cluster differences were statistically significant. Profile analysis revealed statistical stability and internal homogeneity in the good coping cluster and the poor coping cluster.