Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults With Cancer

Abstract

Abstract This chapter explores the experience of children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer and their support networks as they cope with the diagnosis and its treatment. At a phase in life when “growing up” should be the primary focus, cancer poses unique challenges. Assisting individuals with cancer through a developmental framework and in the context of the culture of the family and the communities in which they grow are emphasized as being integral to the helping process. Incorporating cultural humility and responsiveness and understanding the intersection between facing cancer at young ages and the developmental tasks at hand (such as identity formation, mastering decision-making skills, and finding a place in family and peer networks) provides a framework for facilitating coping with cancer and enabling growth throughout the illness journey, whether facing issues around survivorship or at the end of life.