Navigating the cancer trajectory in colorectal cancer: perceptions of cure over care, efficiency, and limited emotional support
6 affiliations
- 1Department of Oncology, University Hospital of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark
- 2Department of Regional Health Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
- 3National Rehabilitation Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, Aarhus, Denmark
- 4Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- 5Department of Surgery, University Hospital of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark
- 6Department of Gastroenterology, University Hospital of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark
Abstract
Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate interactions in the cancer trajectory of patients with colorectal cancer and their healthcare professionals, with a focus on needs assessment prior to cancer survivorship care.
Methods: A qualitative ethnographic design guided by interpretive description was employed. Data were generated through 110 h of field observations at a surgical department and two semistructured focus group interviews with ten patients. Symbolic interactionism provided the theoretical lens. Data were analyzed inductively through coding, patterns, and thematic development.
Results: The analysis generated three interrelated themes: Perceptions on cure over care highlighted that the healthcare system’s prioritization of biomedical outcomes often overshadowed emotional and psychosocial support. Perceptions of communication shaped by efficiency described the ways in which time constraints and fragmented care disrupted the relational continuity. Perceptions of limited emotional support illustrated the profound sense of abandonment that many patients experienced, particularly in the transition from active treatment to life after cancer.
Conclusion: The study demonstrated that interactions around needs assessment are often shaped by structural and efficiency-driven priorities, leaving patients with limited emotional support. This highlights the critical need for further research aimed at embedding compassionate, patient-centered communication into needs assessment and survivorship care to ensure that patients’ psychosocial as well as biomedical needs are systematically addressed across the cancer trajectory.
Implications for Cancer Survivors: A future holistic approach toward cancer survivorship care, where emotional and psychosocial well-being of cancer survivors is taken care of, to prevent feelings of abandonment and fear of recurrence.
Related
- Healthy lifestyle maintenance among breast and colorectal cancer survivors: associations with fear of recurrence and emotional distress
- Yield and efficiency of fecal immunochemical tests (FITs) for advanced colorectal neoplasia alone vs. with risk factors or risk prediction models: a descriptive systematic review
- Navigating Nutrition Information in the Digital Era: How Tourism and Recreation Students Evaluate Online Dietary Advice?
- Dual PD-1/LAG-3 Blockade in Breast Cancer: Navigating Benefit and Risk.
- The Rainbow After the Storm: Navigating Pregnancy After Perinatal Loss
BibTeX
@article{witte2026navigating,
title = {{Navigating the cancer trajectory in colorectal cancer: perceptions of cure over care, efficiency, and limited emotional support}},
author = {Henriette Witte and Frede Donskov and Charlotte Handberg and Rasmus Krøijer and Lea Ladegaard Grønkjær},
journal = {Journal of Cancer Survivorship},
year = {2026},
month = jun,
doi = {10.1007/s11764-026-02049-7},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s11764-026-02049-7},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Navigating the cancer trajectory in colorectal cancer: perceptions of cure over care, efficiency, and limited emotional support
AU - Henriette Witte
AU - Frede Donskov
AU - Charlotte Handberg
AU - Rasmus Krøijer
AU - Lea Ladegaard Grønkjær
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/06/02
JO - Journal of Cancer Survivorship
DO - 10.1007/s11764-026-02049-7
UR - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11764-026-02049-7
AB - Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate interactions in the cancer trajectory of patients with colorectal cancer and their healthcare professionals, with a focus on needs assessment prior to cancer survivorship care. Methods: A qualitative ethnographic design guided by interpretive description was employed. Data were generated through 110 h of field observations at a surgical department and two semistructured focus group interviews with ten patients. Symbolic interactionism provided the theoretical lens. Data were analyzed inductively through coding, patterns, and thematic development. Results: The analysis generated three interrelated themes: Perceptions on cure over care highlighted that the healthcare system’s prioritization of biomedical outcomes often overshadowed emotional and psychosocial support. Perceptions of communication shaped by efficiency described the ways in which time constraints and fragmented care disrupted the relational continuity. Perceptions of limited emotional support illustrated the profound sense of abandonment that many patients experienced, particularly in the transition from active treatment to life after cancer. Conclusion: The study demonstrated that interactions around needs assessment are often shaped by structural and efficiency-driven priorities, leaving patients with limited emotional support. This highlights the critical need for further research aimed at embedding compassionate, patient-centered communication into needs assessment and survivorship care to ensure that patients’ psychosocial as well as biomedical needs are systematically addressed across the cancer trajectory. Implications for Cancer Survivors: A future holistic approach toward cancer survivorship care, where emotional and psychosocial well-being of cancer survivors is taken care of, to prevent feelings of abandonment and fear of recurrence.
SN - 1932-2259
SN - 1932-2267
ER -