Sibling's Response to the Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer

The purpose of this research project is to explore the healthy sibling’s response to the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. A cancer diagnosis is a life altering event that effects the ill child, the family, and more specifically sibling(s) if applicable. Over the past decade research on siblings of children with cancer has steadily increased and called for implementing the population into the pediatric oncology plan of care. A systematic literature review containing both qualitative and quantitative data was conducted in order to uncover common themes presented in existing sibling research that influence the sibling experience. A literature search was conducted utilizing EBSCOhost, SAGE journals, and CINAHL. Inclusion criteria used included English, full text, scholarly, peer reviewed, research articles, and systematic reviews, and the search was limited to publications between January 2014 to August 2019. Search results found 196 articles originally. The researcher removed duplicates and scanned the titles narrowing the literature to a total of thirteen articles. The articles included comprised literature reviews, interviews, group intervention studies, a cross-sectional study, and case-controlled design. From this systematic review, common themes that emerged included sibling demographics and characteristics, emotional/behavioral difficulties, a lost sense of self, altered family functioning, the effect of peer, family, and professional support systems, and lack of knowledge and communication. These themes can be interpreted as factors that may influence a sibling’s cancer experience. The results of this research project showed that the sibling’s experience to cancer is complex, multifaceted, and unique. These findings emphasize the need to provide siblings with adequate resources and support in an effort to mitigate the negative effects a diagnosis and treatment of cancer can bring. It is important that the entire healthcare team is competent in this care perspective so that appropriate referrals and interventions can be made, and siblings have the smoothest transition possible.