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Abstract
Families of cancer patients can be viewed as experiencing a sequence of problems as they cope with the demands of the patient's illness. This article reviews clinical and research literature on family problems during six phases of cancer: diagnosis, hospital, posthospital, adjuvant treatment, recurrence, and terminal. The author identifies the central issues in current research as well as the synchronies and gaps between clinical and empirical data. Focusing on recent studies, the article extends both the phases and problems that Northouse identified in a review published in 1984. It also identifies necessary areas for future research and suggests the need to help families anticipate and cope with the issues central to them at each phase of thc illness.