Exploring the Lived Experience and Meaning of Immunotherapy Among Cancer Patients
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Abstract
Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics increasingly recognize that the effectiveness of cancer treatments extends beyond biological outcomes to encompass patients’ lived experiences. Within this context, immunotherapy presents a unique clinical and emotional landscape where patients face unpredictable side effects and evolving perceptions of healing. However, little is known about how patients interpret and adapt to these challenges, leaving the existential dimensions of treatment underexplored. This study addresses this gap by examining how cancer patients undergoing immunotherapy make sense of their experiences through a phenomenological lens. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), in-depth interviews were conducted with twelve patients receiving immunotherapy at a tertiary oncology center. Participants ranged in age from 35 to 68 years and included both male and female patients diagnosed with various cancer types, primarily melanoma and lung cancer. Data were analyzed through iterative thematic interpretation, revealing five interrelated themes: living with uncertainty, negotiating bodily control, developing emotional resilience, experiencing empathetic communication, and reconstructing meaning beyond illness. The findings demonstrate that patients transform vulnerability into empowerment through adaptive meaning-making, redefining their relationship with illness and the body. This interpretative framework provides a holistic understanding of immunotherapy that integrates medical, emotional, and existential perspectives. Despite these valuable insights, the study is limited by its small sample size and single-center recruitment, which may restrict the generalizability of findings to broader cancer populations or different healthcare contexts. Future studies with larger and more diverse samples are needed to validate and extend these findings. These results highlight the importance of incorporating phenomenological insights into patient-centered oncology care. By acknowledging patients’ subjective experiences, clinicians and researchers can foster more empathetic, reflective, and effective therapeutic practices that align biomedical treatment with the lived realities of those it seeks to heal.
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