Problems experienced by newly diagnosed cancer patients at Mankweng hospital, Limpopo Province, South Africa

Abstract

Cancer has a reputation of being a progressive fatal condition and can bring about fear to newly diagnosed patients. The aim of this study was to determine and describe the problems experienced by newly diagnosed cancer patients at Mankweng hospital in Capricorn district, Limpopo Province. A qualitative, explorative and phenomenological research methodology was adopted. The population consisted of all newly diagnosed cancer patients who were admitted at Mankweng hospital. Purposive sampling was used to select the eight participants who participated in the semi-structured interview sessions until data saturation was reached. Semi-structured interviews with a guide were used to collect data. The data were analysed using Tesch’s open coding method. The findings indicated that newly diagnosed cancer patients face a number of problems such as challenging consultation process, lack of resources in peripheral hospitals, adjustment to new dietary patterns and frustration. It was recommended that health care providers should promote good interpersonal relationships with newly diagnosed patients to ease the suffering of cancer patients.

Keywords: Cancer, newly diagnosed, problems, experiences.