BACKGROUND: In this study,
consultations with
children of young
patients with
cancer were evaluated by dividing the
child 's age into infancy, childhood, and
adolescence to ensure the necessity and importance of appropriate intervention, coordination, and
communication .
METHODS: From June 2017 to February 2019,
medical records and
consultation records were reviewed by selecting suitable cases among
patients hospitalized in
hospice palliative care unit at a Pusan national
university Yangsan
hospital . The
consultation was conducted on several occasions by
nurses , doctors and
social workers from the
time the
patient was hospitalized to the day before
death .
RESULTS: The cases of
consultation were as follows
female patient with
stomach cancer with a
child in infancy,
patient with
gastric cancer with a
child in childhood, and
male patient with
rectal cancer with a
child in
adolescence .
CONCLUSION: It is ideal for
parents to initiate
communication with their
children on their terminal status, so multidisciplinary teams must first support the
motivation . In
consultations with
children , we should first explain the information about the
cancer status of the
parents , followed by the
future clinical course , estimated
life expectancy , and changes related to terminal status. Additionally, we must attempt to manage the psychological and emotional concerns of
children . This study may support the creation of an
atmosphere for in-depth
research on
family interviews of young
patients with
cancer in
Korea . We think that this
will contribute as basic data for some guidelines for
communication based on the age of
children in
consultations with
patients with terminal
cancer .