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Family, Friends and Caregivers 

While the majority of insights from the Cancer Insights Panel* centred around the experience of the person with cancer, some important commentary related to the support networks of patients – including their family, friends and caregivers. The insights broadly aligned to:1

Their coping and mental health
Their relationship with the patient
Their relationship with the medical team 

Below are the panel members’ insights relating to the experience of family, friends and caregivers of people with cancer, and their asks for them moving forward.

Hear from Adesewa, who helped care for her mother while studying at university

Coping and mental health

What the panel members said…1

What family, friends and caregivers are asking for…1

  • “There was a lack of mental health support for the family.” – carer  
  • “[Need to know] where to go for help as a carer. I don’t feel like I am able to feel bad or say my emotions.” – carer  
  • “Nothing prepares a family, children, partners, or parents to deal with loss.” – carer, bowel cancer
  • “After my brother passed away, the family tried to reach out for counselling but these services were overstretched and unfortunately, my brother’s wife only managed to get a couple of sessions in.” – carer, bowel cancer
Signposts to mental health support, from day 1 
  • Learning that a loved one has cancer is difficult; it can bring on a range of emotions. Yet the panel members identified a general lack of coping and mental health support for family, friends and caregivers of people with cancer. 
  • This void could be filled by signposting to information about what a diagnosis means and what’s to come, or sharing details of support groups where they can connect with others in a similar situation.
Emotional support after the passing of a loved one
  • Death of a loved one is, for many, an incredibly difficult thing to cope with. However, the panel members highlighted that often there is little or no support shared with family, close friends and caregivers after someone with cancer has died. 
  • The insights revealed the importance of emotional support to help mitigate any downstream mental health issues.  

Relationship with the patient

What the panel members said…1

What family, friends and caregivers are asking for…1

  • “Many people experience a significant change in relationships with friends and family.” – patient, colorectal cancer
  • “People don’t understand the long-term effects of treatment and how it affects me as a person.” – patient, colorectal cancer
  • “Some members of my family think I am still as fit as I was pre-cancer, but I am not. They can’t understand that it is different when you are in remission… some days are better than others.” – patient
  • “There is no information that explains and supports families facing a young person having end-of-life symptoms (e.g. anxiety, panic attacks, no appetite, etc.).” – carer, bowel cancer
Information and resources to help them support their loved one
  • The panel members discussed how hard it can be to adapt to a ‘new normal’ in which a loved one is perhaps less capable, healthy or energetic than they were before a diagnosis of cancer. 
  • Patients and caregivers alike would appreciate resources to help loved ones understand what the patient is going through and support them in coming to terms with what the ‘new normal’ looks like.

Relationship with the healthcare team

What the panel members said…1

What family, friends and caregivers are asking for…1

  • “Accessing medical records takes time, especially when the patient’s family members are requesting information on their behalf.” – carer, bowel cancer
  • “Relationship with team of carers [could be improved]; they’re not there for the family after end-of-life” – carer  
  • “There is a difference in information given to patients and family. We [the family] need someone to talk to about what happens next and what we can do to help.” – carer 
Improved dialogue and better access to medical staff/information
  • Some people with cancer are heavily reliant on their loved ones. Whether it’s calling the hospital to check the details of an appointment or collecting medicine on their behalf, it can be a family member, friend or caregiver doing these jobs. 
  • The panel members identified a need for better communication – including improved information sharing – between HCPs and loved ones, to contribute towards an easier cancer experience.    
Insights Surrounding Family, Friends and Caregivers (PDF download)

Download a one-page summary of the Cancer Insights Panel's commentary and key takeways surrounding the experience of family, friends and caregivers during a loved one's experience of cancer

 Download  PDFLoading

Explore More

 Confidence in the Healthcare System 

Insights surrounding patients’ confidence in the healthcare system during an experience 

 Read MoreLoading Mental Health

Insights surrounding patients' mental health during an experience of cancer

Read MoreLoadingCancer Insights Panel

*The Cancer Insights Panel is a Pfizer initiative developed to gather the perspectives of people impacted by cancer. The first panel, which ran between June 2022 and January 2024, was formed of 30 people who were carefully selected based on their ability to share the needs and voices of a range of people affected by cancer, including patients and carers alike. This resource has been developed based on insights shared by panel members. Pfizer has reviewed and compiled these insights, to identify potential areas for improvement during an experience of cancer. All panel members have consented to the sharing of their contributions. Direct quotes from panel members are presented in quotation marks.

Reference: 

Pfizer Ltd. Data on file [REF-UNP27003].
PP-UNP-GBR-8324. October 2024

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