Spatial Experiences of Female Cancer Survivors

Abstract

A phenomenological approach of the home can inspire research of the ways in which female cancer survivors experience the transition from the oncology care setting to home. Ten gynecological cancer survivors were interviewed. The analysis was inspired by the hermeneutic approach described by Ricoeur, and followed an interpretive structure that consisted of naïve reading, structural analysis, and comprehensive understanding. Based on the women’s stories, we argue that we are beings for whom home is a developed extension of ourselves, and one that is particularly significant insofar as it provides us with a basis from which we find ourselves able to expand into a larger “space”—a world. Information from this study could provide guidelines for health care staff members.