Introduction: The American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute estimate that approximately 9,000 to 12,400 children and adolescents in the United States are diagnosed with cancer each year. Although childhood cancer is rare, it is the leading cause of death from disease among children 1-14 years. Most studies on health related quality of life in children with cancer have focused on survivors. Only few studies have evaluated patients during ongoing oncological treatment. Objective: To describe the most common coping strategies of adolescent with leukemia at PGH Cancer Institute. Methods: A prospective cross sectional study of coping behavior of adolescent patients with leukemia was done using convenient sampling of patients seen from October 21 to November 25 at the Philippine General Hospital Cancer Institute. Results: A total of 16 patients with leukemia ages 11 to 17 years old are described as follows: majority are males, Roman Catholics, all attending school (elementary, high school and college). The most common coping strategies used by the adolescents were using drugs prescribed by doctors, watching televisions, listening to music, being close with someone, eating, praying, trying to think of the good things in life, sleeping and going to church. Conclusions: Coping strategies most commonly used were self reliance, seeking diversion, relaxing and seeing spiritual support. Recommendation: A prospective study using a larger sample size is should be done.
Human ; Male ; Female ; Young Adult ; Adolescent ; Child ; ADAPTATION, PSYCHOLOGICAL ; LEUKEMIA