Abstract
This study aimed to describe the perception of the meaning of life and coping strategies of 19 patients with cancer at a public hospital in Brazil. This is descriptive and qualitative research that used Amedeo Giorgi’s phenomenological model, and the interpretation was performed in light of Viktor Frankl’s theory. Two themes have emerged: (1) the perception of the meaning of life in the experience with cancer and (2) religious coping to fight the disease. This study showed that revealing the meaning of life in the cancer experience contributes to better treatment compliance, a more favorable view of the future and better quality of life. On the other hand, religious coping is the strategy most used by patients who believe in God, showing a greater state of psychological and spiritual well-being.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data and Material Availability
The data that support this study are available upon request from the corresponding author.
Code Availability
Not applicable for that section.
References
Andrade, C. C., & Holanda, A. F. (2010). Notes on qualitative research and empirical phenomenological research. Estudos De Psicologia (campinas), 27(2), 259–268. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0103-166X2010000200013
Brasil, Ministério da Saúde, Instituto Nacional de Câncer. (2023). Introdução23 de Mai de 2023. https://www.gov.br/inca/pt-br/assuntos/cancer/numeros/estimativa/introducao
Brasil, (2004). HumanizaSUS: Política Nacional de Humanização: a humanização como eixo norteador das práticas de atenção e gestão em todas as instâncias do SUS / Ministério da Saúde, Secretaria Executiva, Núcleo Técnico da Política Nacional de Humanização. Ministério da Saúde. https://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/publicacoes/humanizasus_2004.pdf
Brasil, (2012). Resolução nº 466, de 12 de dezembro de 2012 da Comissão nacional de Saúde: Dispõe sobre diretrizes e normas regulamentadoras de pesquisas envolvendo seres humanos. Diário Oficial [da] República Federativa do Brasil, Brasília, DF, 13 Jun. 2013. https://conselho.saude.gov.br/resolucoes/2012/Reso466.pdf
Brasil, (2016). Resolução nº 510, de 07 de abril de 2016 da Comissão nacional de Saúde: Dispõe sobre as normas aplicáveis a pesquisas em Ciências Humanas e Sociais. Diário Oficial [da] República Federativa do Brasil, Brasília, DF, 24 maio 2016. http://conselho.saude.gov.br/resolucoes/2016/Reso510.pdf
Breitbart, W., Rosenfeld, B., Gibson, C., Pessin, H., Poppito, S., Nelson, C., et al. (2010). Meaning-centered group psychotherapy for patients with advanced cancer: A pilot randomized controlled trial. Psycho-Oncology, 19, 21–28. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.1556
Breitbart, W., Rosenfeld, B., Pessin, H., Applebaum, A., Kulikowski, J., & Lichtenthal, W. G. (2015). Meaning-centered group psychotherapy: An effective intervention for improving psychological well-being in patients with advanced cancer. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 33(7), 749–754. https://doi.org/10.1200/JCO.2014.57.2198
Ferreira, F. L., Freire, D. P. A., Silveira, C. L. A., Silva, M. P. A., De Sá, C. H., Souza, S. I., et al. (2020). The influence of spirituality and religiosity in acceptance of the disease and treatment of oncologic patients: an integrative literature review. Revista Brasileira De Cancerologia, 66(2), e07422. https://doi.org/10.32635/2176-9745.RBC.2020v66n2.422
Fraguell, C., Limonero, J., & Gil, F. (2018). Psychological aspects of meaning-centered group psychotherapy: Spanish experience. Palliative and Supportive Care, 16(3), 317–324. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1478951517000293
Frankl, V.E. (1998). The will to meaning. Meridian Books.
Frankl, V. E. (2006). Man’s Search for Meaning: an introduction to logotherapy. Beacon Press.
Jenkins, R. A., & Pargament, K. I. (1995). Religion and spirituality as resources for coping with cancer. Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, 13(1–2), 51–74. https://doi.org/10.1300/J077V13N01_04
Oh, P. J., & Kim, S. H. (2014). The effects of spiritual interventions in patients with cancer: A meta-analysis. Oncology Nursing Forum, 41(5), E290–E301. https://doi.org/10.1188/14.onf.e290-e301
Pargament, K. I., Smith, B. W., Koenig, H. G., & Perez, L. (1998). Patterns of positive and negative religious coping with major life stressors. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 37(4), 710–724. https://doi.org/10.2307/1388152
Pargament, K. I., Koenig, H. G., & Perez, L. M. (2000). The many methods of religious coping: development and initial validation of the rcope. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(4), 519–543. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1097-4679(200004)56:4<519::aid-jclp6>3.0.co;2-1
Puchalski, C. M. (2012). Spirituality in the cancer trajectory. Annals of Oncology, 23(3), 49–55. https://doi.org/10.1093/annonc/mds088
Silva, G. C. N., Reis, D. C., Miranda, T. P. S., Melo, R. N. R., Coutinho, M. A. P., Paschoal, G. S., et al. (2019). Religious/spiritual coping and spiritual distress in people with cancer. Revista Brasileira De Enfermagem, 72(6), 1534–1540. https://doi.org/10.1590/0034-7167-2018-0585
Weaver, A. J., & Flannelly, K. J. (2004). The role of religion/spirituality for cancer patients and their caregivers. Southern Medical Journal, 97(12), 1210–1214. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.SMJ.0000146492.27650.1C
Funding
This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
AM, EP, and RS contributed to the study conception, design, and material preparation. Data collection was performed by AM. Data analysis was performed by AM and EP. The first draft of the manuscript was written by AM, EP and RS. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors state that they have no conflicts of interest.
Ethical Approval
The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee under report number 2,376,435, of the Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
de Medeiros, A.Y.B.B.V., Pereira, E.R. & Silva, R.M.C.R.A. The Meaning of Life and Religious Coping in the Fight Against Cancer: A Study with Oncology Patients in Brazil in Light of Viktor Frankl’s Theory. J Relig Health 63, 1373–1389 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-023-01856-x
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-023-01856-x