“It Should Have Been Happening To Me”: The Psychosocial Issues Older Caregiving Mothers Experience

Abstract

The occurrence of cancer is an event of significant importance to family functioning. The present analysis reports on an understudied group profoundly affected by this health event: older mothers caring for an adult child with cancer. As part of a study of breast cancer survivors and their family caregivers, a subsample (N = 13) of older caregiving mothers (mean age 68) participated in focused interviews. The interviews, conducted in English or Spanish, were audio-taped, transcribed, and subjected to content analysis. Analyses of the mothers' accounts elucidate complex psychosocial reactions to their adult daughters' cancer diagnosis that are informed by life-cycle considerations. These reactions, which include a reawakening of maternal behavior, a need to come to terms with the asynchronous nature of their daughters' health event, and an intense feeling of personal responsibility, illustrate the need for family-centered care in oncology.

KEYWORDS:

• adult daughters
• breast cancer
• caregiving
• family centered
• mother–daughter relationship
• parent caregiver
• personal vulnerability

This study has been funded by grants from the Department of Defense, Breast Cancer Initiative, DAMD17-00-1-0215 and the New York State Breast Cancer Research and Education Fund, NYS DOH C017945.