{"id":624,"date":"2013-01-08T15:01:07","date_gmt":"2013-01-08T15:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ijph.blogs.springer.com\/?p=624"},"modified":"2013-01-08T15:01:07","modified_gmt":"2013-01-08T15:01:07","slug":"meet-the-blogger-marie-ennis-oconnor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/meet-the-blogger\/meet-the-blogger-marie-ennis-oconnor\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the Blogger! Marie Ennis-O’Connor talks about blogging and breast cancer survivorship"},"content":{"rendered":"

After two very interesting interviews with\u00a0Kishan Karripannon<\/a> and Tamara Bugembe<\/a>, we continue our series of Meet the Blogger*<\/strong>\u00a0 with a guest blog post of blogger Marie Ennis-O’Connor.<\/p>\n

Marie Ennis-O\u2019Connor is a board member of Europa Donna Ireland – \u00a0The Irish Breast Cancer Campaign<\/span> (www.europadonnaireland<\/b>.ie<\/a><\/cite>) an advocacy group that is one of 46 EUROPA DONNA member countries across Europe. In November 2012, she co-founded#BCCEU, Europe’s first breast cancer social media chat on Twitter. Marie is a regular contributor toHealth Works Collective<\/span>,\u00a0 (http:\/\/healthworkscollective.com) <\/a>an online community for thought leaders in international healthcare and has been an invited speaker at international health conferences. \u00a0She writes about the experience of transitioning from breast cancer patient to survivor on her award-winning blog Journeying Beyond Breast Cancer (http:\/\/journeyingbeyondbreastcancer.com<\/a>)
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Beyond statistics: how blog narratives provide a new framework for a richer understanding of the lived experience of breast cancer survivorship.<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cThe challenge in overcoming cancer is not only to find therapies that will prevent or arrest the disease quickly, but also to map the middle ground of survivorship and minimize its medical and social hazards\u201d<\/i> 1<\/sup><\/b><\/p>\n

Improvements in the early detection and treatment of cancer have increased the periods of survival following a breast cancer diagnosis. However, statistics give no indication of the quality of life experienced in the months and years that follow the end of treatment. Amongst emerging research on the physical and psychosocial aspects of cancer survivorship, some questions still need to be answered. For instance, how does a person transition to survivorship and integrate the cancer experience into their lives over the long term? And what support structures are needed to facilitate this process of integration? A new framework for the study of cancer survivorship, one that assesses the effects of cancer and cancer therapies at key life stages throughout the remainder of a person\u2019s life, is clearly needed.<\/p>\n

It is a common misconception that when a patient walks out of hospital on that last day of treatment their cancer story has ended; in reality another chapter is just beginning. During treatment patients are so caught up in the day-to-day routines of survival that there may be little time to give much thought to anything beyond these routines. It is only when treatment has finished that the full impact of what they have been through hits them. Many cancer survivors are surprised at the intensity of their feelings of vulnerability, sadness and depression. As survivors struggle to come to terms with the physical and emotional aftershocks of cancer, it is not unusual to experience feelings of relief and elation at being given a second chance intermixed with feelings of anxiety, fear and uncertainty about their future. The reality is that for many the end of treatment can be every bit as terrifying as the day of diagnosis. After cancer a person may feel cut adrift without the regular support and reassurance of a medical team and become overwhelmed with thoughts of \u201cwhat next\u201d. As a result an increasing number of survivors are using online media to engage in health-related social networking as they transition from cancer patient to cancer survivor. Personal journals in the form of cancer blogs are growing in popularity not only as a channel for personal thoughts and feelings, but also as a forum for on-going discussion among survivors. Thus these blog narratives provide a framework for a richer understanding of the lived experience of cancer survivorship, and how it evolves over time and at key life stages.<\/p>\n

My own experience as a breast cancer survivor who found a valuable sense of connection and self-constructthrough writing a blog2<\/sup> <\/b><\/a>led to my interest in researching the blogging motivations of other cancer survivors. Through analysing the overarching themes in the blog narratives of a group of younger women, the aim of my study was to explore the lived experience of cancer survival from the perspective of those with direct experience of the situation.3<\/sup> <\/b>A thematic analysis revealed that while the blog narratives conveyed common themes related to physical, psychosocial and emotional issues, the uniqueness of each blog demonstrated that the survival trajectory is a dynamic concept, the challenges of which can vary at different life stages and times. For instance, (as noted by Zebrack) the experience and meaning of disruptions in intimacy will be different for a young, unmarried survivor trying to figure out if and when to disclose the effects of cancer treatment to a potential partner than it will be for an older adult in an established relationship. 4<\/sup><\/b><\/p>\n

My investigation extends previous findings that the lived experience of cancer survival is a complex personal, social, and meaning-making phenomenon which persists beyond the patient and treatment experience. 5<\/sup> <\/b>A cancer diagnosis is not just a single event with a defined beginning and end, but rather a diagnosis initiates a survival trajectory characterized by on-going uncertainty, potentially delayed or late effects of the disease or treatment, and concurrent psychosocial issues that extends over the remainder of a person\u2019s life. 6<\/sup><\/b><\/p>\n

If healthcare providers are to adequately prepare patients for cancer survivorship and assist them in their recovery, then they must achieve a deeper understanding of what surviving cancer is like. Understanding how patients who are transitioning to long-term survivorship manage the impact of cancer on their lives is critical. As suggested by Pascal (2010), cancer survival requires its own analytic frameworks. 7<\/sup> <\/b>The personal perspective shared in blogs offers an opportunity for a richer understanding of the lived experience of cancer survivorship and how it evolves over time. My research confirms earlier research by Hillan (2003) that \u201cthese on-going forums are rich, anecdotal sources of individual experiences with disease progression, reaction to alternative and standard treatments, and opinions on healthcare and its effect on family members and lifestyle.\u201d 8 <\/sup><\/b><\/p>\n

While acknowledging limitations in respect of sample size and selection bias, my study provides the framework for a richer understanding of the lived experience of cancer survivorship. It also suggests scope for further research on the value of blogs to enhance patient-provider communication and as a psychotherapeutic intervention for patients.<\/p>\n

References<\/b>
\n1. Mullan F. 1985. Seasons of survival: Reflections of a physician with cancer. New England Journal of Medicine. 313(4):270\u2013273.<\/p>\n

2. http:\/\/journeyingbeyondbreastcancer.com<\/a><\/p>\n

3. Ennis, M. 2012. Beyond statistics: how analysing blog narratives enhances nursing’s understanding of the survivorship experience of younger women with breast cancer. P083. Proceedings of the European School of Oncology, Breast Cancer in Young Women Conference. Dublin, Ireland, 8 -12 November, 2012.<\/p>\n

4. Zebrack BJ. 2000. Cancer survivor identity and quality of life. Cancer Pract. 8(5):238-42.<\/p>\n

5. Pascal J. 2010. Phenomenology<\/strong>as a research<\/strong>method<\/strong>for social<\/strong>work<\/strong>contexts<\/strong>: <\/b>A case studyof cancer<\/strong>survival<\/strong>. <\/b>Currents<\/strong>: <\/b>New<\/strong>scholarship<\/strong>inhuman<\/strong>services<\/strong>.9 (2) 1-23.<\/p>\n

6, Zebrack BJ. 2000. Cancer survivor identity and quality of life. Cancer Pract. 8(5):238-42.<\/p>\n

7. Pascal J. 2010. Phenomenology<\/strong>as a research<\/strong>method<\/strong>for social<\/strong>work<\/strong>contexts<\/strong>: <\/b>A case studyof cancer<\/strong>survival<\/strong>. <\/b>Currents<\/strong>: <\/b>New<\/strong>scholarship<\/strong>inhuman<\/strong>services<\/strong>.9 (2) 1-23.<\/p>\n

8. Hillan, J. 2003. Physician use of patient-centred weblogs and online journals. Clin Med Res. 333\u2013335.<\/p>\n

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* Meet the Blogger\u201d is a section where invited Public Health bloggers will be contributing posts about their own research and\/ or their experience on using social media in their work. If you would like to contribute, please contact us.
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After two very interesting interviews with\u00a0Kishan Karripannon and Tamara Bugembe, we continue our series of Meet the Blogger*\u00a0 with a guest blog post of blogger Marie Ennis-O’Connor. Marie Ennis-O\u2019Connor is a board member of Europa Donna Ireland – \u00a0The Irish Breast Cancer Campaign (www.europadonnaireland.ie) an advocacy group that is one of 46 EUROPA DONNA member… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":301,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,22,24],"tags":[114,121,287,486,537,598],"class_list":["post-624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-meet-the-blogger","category-social-media","category-students-den","tag-blogs","tag-breast-cancer-survivor","tag-europa-donna-ireland","tag-journeying-beyond-breast-cancer","tag-marie-ennis-oconnor","tag-narrative"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/301"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=624"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blogs.springer.com\/ijph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}