A qualitative investigation into the lived experiences of cancer patients receiving chemotherapy in the Kurdistan region of Iraq

Cancer patients can experience different conditions depending on the quality of the treatment they receive. Chemotherapy is one of the most widely used treatments for cancer patients, leading to a wide range of consequences and outcomes. The present study aimed to investigate the lived experiences of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Using a phenomenological method, this qualitative study was conducted on 13 cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy in Rizgary Teaching Hospital, Erbil, Iraq, from September 2021 to July 2022. The participants were chosen using a purposive sampling method. The required data were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews. The interviews were started by asking general questions (such as “Could you tell me about your chemotherapy experience?) and then analyzed by the Van Manen method (1990).

The results of data analysis showed that patients described their experience as “regaining hope in life,” which was drawn as the main theme that included 5 subthemes, namely, new lifestyle, new goals for life, optimism, value of life, and re-trust in God.

According to the results of the present study, since the recovery of patients and the effectiveness of treatments are greatly dependent on the patients’ psychological state, their lives improved, they took up new lifestyles and goals in their lives, became more optimistic, understood value of life, and regained their trust in God after they had received chemotherapy. Nurses working in chemotherapy wards are highly recommended to pay more attention to the psychological and spiritual state of cancer patients to promote hope in life among them and help them live normal lives with their families after undergoing chemotherapy