ABSTRACT
The role of the psychoanalyst as hospital visitor is rather strange. Reflecting on his hospital admission, James thought that he had probably had an anxiety attack because he had felt better before being given oxygen. James’s fear of psychological breakdown was still present; as he expressed it, the wall was still there between him and others and he wanted to get through it. Psycho-oncology is a relatively new field of study bridging the psychological, psychosocial as well as medical aspects of treating cancer survivors and those dying from it. Thus there is much more attention to the psychological aspects of dying. The structured treatment manual by W. S. Breitbart and S. R. Poppito addresses the spiritual well-being as well as psychosocial aspects of the work with patients with advanced cancer.
