D2- Responses

Octasia Gainer

Stage Completion: 1

The Lived Experiences of Breast Cancer Survivors Coping With Fear of Recurrence

I. Introduction

A. Problem Statement

1. Fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) is one of the most commonly reported psychological concerns among breast cancer survivors and may negatively affect emotional well-being, coping abilities, quality of life, and daily functioning (Tran et al., 2021). Many survivors continue to experience persistent anxiety, uncertainty, emotional distress, and hypervigilance regarding the possibility of cancer returning even after successful treatment completion (Bentley, 2026). Research also suggests that fear of recurrence can contribute to social withdrawal, impaired emotional adjustment, and increased psychological distress among survivors (Hall et al., 2021).

a. Tran et al. (2021) discussed how fear of recurrence negatively impacts breast cancer survivors during survivorship.

b. b. Bentley (2026) explored the ongoing emotional adjustment and adaptation experiences of breast cancer survivors coping with fear of recurrence.

2. Studying the lived experiences of breast cancer survivors coping with fear of recurrence is important because unresolved fear may result in mental health issues, poor quality of life, and decreased in functioning (Mosconi et al., 2025). Having knowledge and understanding of survivors’ experiences can assist counselors and medical proffesionals develop interventions , and survivorship care plans that address emotional and psychological needs. It is believed that this investigation will assist in creating ways to strengthen and increase the healing in survivors (Jiang et al., 2025).

a. Mosconi et al. (2025) highlight the relationship between fear of recurrence and the impact it has on quality of life among breast cancer survivors.

b. Resilience is known to be a factor that helps with adjusting feelings when facing fear of cancer recurrence (Jiang et al., 2025)

3. The problem is that many breast cancer survivors continue to experience persistent fear of cancer recurrence that negatively affects their emotional well-being, coping abilities, and quality of life, yet their lived experiences and perceptions surrounding this fear remain insufficiently understood (Tran et al., 2021; Bentley, 2026).

B. Purpose

1. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to explore and

understand the lived experiences of breast cancer survivors coping with fear of recurrence following treatment completion.

2. The purpose of this study is to explore the lived experiences of breast cancer survivors as they cope with fear of recurrence and to understand how this fear influences their emotional well-being, coping strategies, relationships, and daily functioning.

C. General Research Questions

1. How do breast cancer survivors describe their lived experiences with fear of recurrence following treatment completion?

2. What emotional, psychological, and social challenges do breast cancer survivors experience related to fear of recurrence?

3. What coping strategies do breast cancer survivors use to manage fear of recurrence during survivorship?

D. Research Plan

1. This study will utilize a qualitative phenomenological research design. Data will be collected through structured interviews with breast cancer survivors who have completed active treatment and currently experience fear of recurrence. The interview data will be to identify shared meanings, patterns, and themes related to participants’ lived experiences.

2. Utilizing qualitative phenomenological plan is choosen because this focuses on the way people provide meaning on their experiences (Creswell & Poth, 2025). When breast cancer survivors speak about their experiences and the way fear of recurrence changes their world is shown clearly. It has been observed that this method fits the goal of seeing the person's view instead of just counting numbers (Byrne, 2025).

II. Review of Related Literature

A. Theoretical Framework

1. This work is built on the belief that everyone sees the world in their own way. Reality is seen as a subjective thing that is built through the events people live. Knowledge is found when the people who survived talk about their own path. Many experts claim that the person doing the research must value the feelings and thoughts of the participants (Creswell & Poth, 2025).

a) Creswell and Poth (2025) explained that qualitative research emphasizes subjective meaning and understanding of lived experiences.

b) Byrne (2025) emphasized that phenomenology seeks to understand how individuals interpret and make meaning of experiences.

2. The way this study sees the world is through constructivism because the goal is to see how people deal with fear of cancer recurrence. It has been observed that people can grow stronger after going through hard times (Hashemi & Mahmoudzadeh, 2025). From a spiritual perspective, the study sees that hope and help from others are very important during hard times.

a). Creswell and Poth (2025) described constructivism as focusing on

participants’ interpretations of their experiences.

b). Hashemi and Mahmoudzadeh (2025) discussed posttraumatic growth following traumatic experiences and adversity.

B. Important Thinkers/Experts/Theorists in This Field of Study

1. Byrne (2025). Clark Moustakas’ Husserl.  The Qualitative Report,

a) Considered a foundational in phenomenological research methodology.

b) This work will assist people finding meaning in life stories .

2. Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2025). Qualitative inquiry

and research design: Choosing among five approaches.

a) Researchers who explain phenomenological and constructivist methodologies.

b) Their work is foundational in qualitative research design and inquiry.

3. Hashemi and Mahmoudzadeh (2025). Posttraumatic growth: Conceptual foundations and empirical evidence.

a). Introduced the theory of posttraumatic growth following traumatic

life.

b). Their work contributes to understanding resilience and meaning-

making among survivors.

4. Luigjes‐Huizer et al. (2022) What is the prevalence of fear of cancer recurrence

in cancer survivors and patients? A systematic review and individual participant data meta‐analysis.

a). Researchers recognized for looking at how many people have this

worry in fear of cancer recurrence

b). Their work contributes to understanding psychosocial interventions for

survivors.

C. Related Research

1. Tran, T. X. M., et al. (2021)

a). This study examined fear of cancer recurrence and its psychological impact among breast cancer survivors during survivorship.

b). Important because it demonstrates how fear of recurrence contributes to emotional distress and reduced quality of life.

c). Key descriptors: emotional distress, anxiety, survivorship, coping, and quality of life.

2. Park and Lim (2022)

a). This study explored relationships between emotional distress and fear of recurrence among survivors.

b). Important because it highlights psychological and emotional consequences associated with fear of recurrence.

c). Key descriptors: emotional functioning, distress, survivorship adjustment.

3. Jiang, Y., et al. (2025)

a). This research explored the relationship between emotional distress, resilience, and fear of recurrence among breast cancer patients.

b). Important because it identifies resilience as a protective factor in survivorship

adjustment.

c). Key descriptors: resilience, coping, emotional adjustment, and survivorship.

4. Mosconi, P., et al. (2025)

a). This study examined quality of life and fear of recurrence among breast

cancer survivors following treatment.

b). Important because it demonstrates the long-term emotional impact of

survivorship experiences.

c). Key descriptors: quality of life, emotional well being, survivorship care.

5. Ding, Y., et al. (2026)

a). This study explored fear of cancer recurrence among newly diagnosed breast cancer patients before treatment.

b). Important because it identified emotional distress and social support as factors associated with fear of recurrence.

c). Key descriptors: social support, uncertainty, emotional distress, and coping.

III. Methods

A. Design (approach) and Rationale

1. Which approach are you using? (Phenomenological, Case Study, Grounded Theory)

2. Why is this approach a valid design for your study?

B. Site

1. Pseudonym (made up name of the site)

2. Location (general information, i.e., “large high school in central VA”)

3. Specific demographics

4. Other pertinent information about the site

C. Participants

1. How many?

2. How selected?

3. Specific information (gender, age, etc.)

D. Role of Researcher or Personal biography (the 2nd is much more detailed…you will have to decide what you believe is more pertinent to your study)

1. Name

2. Job

3. Background information

4. Anything else that will impact how you view the data and the research surroundings (i.e., I would have to put my love affair with God)

E. Data Collection (a critical aspect of qualitative inquiry is rigorous and varied data collection techniques)

1. Method 1(i.e., interviews)

a. detail (i.e., principal at least 3 times)

b. detail (i.e., parents, snowball sampling, etc.)

2. Method 2

a. detail

b. detail

3. Method 3

a. detail

b. detail

F. Data Analysis

1. 1st Technique (i.e., open coding)

a. information about it (i.e., organizing data into…)

b. specific information on how this process will be done

c. why important (i.e., this process allows the researcher to…)

2. 2nd Technique (i.e., constant comparison method of looking at data…)

G. Trustworthiness (the reliability, dependability, and transferability information goes here)

1. 1st Technique (i.e., member checks)

a. information about it (i.e., having participants review and respond to…)

b. why important (i.e., this process increases the reliability of the study because…)

2. 2nd Technique (i.e., audit trail)

a. information about it

b. why important

3. 3rd Technique (i.e., reflexivity or memoing)

a. information about it

b. why important

c. and so on…

H. Ethical Considerations

1. potential issue and how addressed (i.e., negative results could impact school/researcher, used pseudonyms for all participants and identifiable names)

2. potential issue and how addressed

3. protection of data

References

Bentley, G., Zamir, O., Dahabre, R., Roziner, I., Poikonen‐Saksela, P., Mazzocco, K., Sousa, B., & Pat‐Horenczyk, R. (2026). Fear of Cancer recurrence and adaptation in Early Breast Cancer Survivorship: A Latent Profile analysis. Stress and Health, 42(1), e70149. https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.70149

Byrne, T. (2026). Clark Moustakas' Counterfeit Husserl. The Qualitative Report, 31(2), 5089-5105. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2026.8402

Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2025).  Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (5th ed.). Sage.

Ding, Y., Zhang, H., Zhong, Q., Zhang, L., & Qin, H. (2026). Fear of cancer recurrence before treatment in patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer: Cross-Sectional study. JMIR Cancer, 12, e89346. https://doi.org/10.2196/89346

Hashemi, M., & Mahmoudzadeh, M. (2025b). The lived experiences of childhood trauma in war: has post-traumatic growth occurred? European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 16(1), 2468605. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008066.2025.2468605

Jiang, Y., Li, H., Xiong, Y., Zheng, X., Liu, Y., Zhou, J., & Ye, Z. (2025c). Association between fear of cancer recurrence and emotional distress in breast cancer: a latent profile and moderation analysis. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 16, 1521555. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1521555

Luigjes‐Huizer, Y. L., Tauber, N. M., Humphris, G., Kasparian, N. A., Lam, W. W. T., Lebel, S., Simard, S., Smith, A. B., Zachariae, R., Afiyanti, Y., Bell, K. J. L., Custers, J. a. E., De Wit, N. J., Fisher, P. L., Galica, J., Garland, S. N., Helsper, C. W., Jeppesen, M. M., Liu, J., . . . Van Der Lee, M. L. (2022). What is the prevalence of fear of cancer recurrence in cancer survivors and patients? A systematic review and individual participant data meta‐analysis. Psycho-Oncology, 31(6), 879–892. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.592

Michel, A., Dorval, M., Chiquette, J., & Savard, J. (2024). Fear of cancer recurrence in breast cancer survivors carrying a BRCA1 or 2 genetic mutation : a cross-sectional study. Hereditary Cancer in Clinical Practice, 22(1), 16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13053-024-00285-5

Mosconi, P., Folli, S., Miceli, R., Scrudato, S., Gennaro, M., Tinè, G., De Santis, M. C., Ferraris, C., Martelli, G., Di Carlo, I., Maugeri, I., Arata, A., Carnevale, M. G., Listorti, C., Agresti, R., Borreani, C., Vernieri, C., Pruneri, G., Baili, P., . . . Apolone, G. (2025). Health-related quality of life and fear of recurrence after early breast cancer treatment: Results from a cross-sectional survey. The Breast, 85, 104647. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.breast.2025.104647

Park, S., & Lim, J. (2022). Cognitive behavioral therapy for reducing fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) among breast cancer survivors: a systematic review of the literature. BMC Cancer, 22(1), 217. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-021-08909-y

Tran, T. X. M., Jung, S., Lee, E., Cho, H., Kim, N. Y., Shim, S., Kim, H. Y., Kang, D., Cho, J., Lee, E., Chang, Y. J., & Cho, H. (2021b). Fear of cancer recurrence and its negative impact on Health-Related quality of life in long-term breast cancer survivors. Cancer Research and Treatment, 54(4), 1065–1073. https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2021.835