Impact of child's cancer on family life case study: Children with cancer newly admitted to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Cairo University

Abstract

The diagnosis of a family member with any disease certainly affects the family life in general. Hence, this study aims at exploring how the diagnosis of a child with cancer affects family life. Additionally, the study seeks to identify the extent to which the life of family can change when they have a child diagnosed with cancer. This study uses advanced statistical analysis through conducting a random sampling field study of (804) individuals, of which (402) were mothers of children diagnosed with cancer (as a case group), and (402) were mothers whose children's samples gave negative results when tested for cancer (as a control group). Through a Questionnaire Form designed to track the extent to which the lives of families covered by the two study samples (the case group and the control group) have changed, data were collected in 2015, the researcher used a number of indicators, which she believes to have an effect on family status, to compare the changes experienced by families in both groups. The 11 indicators used by the study measure the effects of having a child with cancer in each family individually. Results revealed significant differences in the values of indicators between the group having a child with cancer and the group whose children tested negative for cancer before and after diagnosis/examination. A composite indicator consisting of the previous indicators is developed using Factor Analysis, which calculated the said indicator based on four factors. These factors are then multiplied by their corresponding weights and aggregated into the new composite indicator(Family Status Indicator). The indicator was clustered using the K-Mean Cluster Analysis into 3 clusters, i.e. Low, medium, and high. Conclusion: The child cancer has an impact on the Family Status indicator, demographics and socioeconomic determinants affect the Family Status indicator like (mother work and Education, Education of the father, Place of Residence,...etc.) after child examination or disease.