Purpose/objectives: To generate a detailed description of how adolescents with cancer manage their daily lives and the way in which fatigue affects this.
Design: Phenomenologic.
Setting: A pediatric oncology unit at a regional cancer center in the United Kingdom.
Sample: A convenience sample of adolescents (N = 8), aged 16-19 years and with hematologic or solid tumors, who currently were undergoing primary treatment.
Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted using 11 open-ended questions.
Main research variables: Adolescents' perceptions of fatigue, well-being, and ability to maintain normal activities.
Findings: Adolescents reported fatigue as overwhelming and embedded in a syndrome of symptoms and emotions associated with the illness itself and with treatment. Fatigue had a significant effect on physical, psychological, and social well-being, placing an extra burden on adolescents who were striving for normality.
Conclusions: Equipped with a rich description of fatigue, clinicians will be better prepared to initiate strategies congruent with their own work settings and particular patients.
Implications for nursing: The findings should enable healthcare professionals to construct a more accurate and perceptive picture of the needs of particular individuals, highlighting those that may be amenable to intervention.