ABSTRACT
Someone who is diagnosed with a severe illness experiences feelings of threat, loss, uncertainty, finitude, anxiety, and of deprivation of basic needs, which cause discomfort and suffering. Suffering is part of the personal experience of cancer patients, particularly terminal patients who not only have to face physical symptoms, but are also confronted with the idea of death being near and, therefore, feel their integrity is threatened. In addition, cancer patients experience discomfort resulting from the treatment itself, which can add to this sense of threat to physical integrity.
