Qualitative evaluation of the life experiences of spouses of prostate cancer patients receiving androgen deprivation therapy.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to qualitatively evaluate the life experiences of women whose spouses had been receiving androgen deprivation therapy.

METHODS: The purposive sample of the research, in which a descriptive phenomenological design was used, consisted of 15 women. The data were evaluated according to Colaizzi's phenomenological analysis steps.

RESULTS: The views of the participants were classified into 7 themes: loss and grief, physical difficulties, socioeconomic difficulties, psychological difficulties, relational changes, strengths, and benefits.

CONCLUSION: It was determined that women whose husbands had been receiving ADT experienced grief responses and physical, socioeconomic, and psychological difficulties. Psychological difficulties were found to include care burden, hospital stress, sexuality, and burnout. It was observed that the patients and their spouses experienced some positive and negative relational changes. Satisfaction with health services and resilience were facilitating factors for female spouses to adapt to the treatment process. It was determined that during the adaptation to the disease and treatment process, the participants had some needs such as family support, economic support, reduction of negative representations in the media, and enhancement of communication skills of health professionals. Moreover, they were found to have some benefits related to post-traumatic growth. Uro-oncology nurses can develop services intended to improve the well-being of the wives of men receiving ADT and use the knowledge and experience of uro-oncology nursing for the benefit of both patients and caregivers.