| dc.description.abstract | Treatment of childhood cancer is demanding and low and middle income countries struggle with provision
of such care. This dissertation is a literature review and applies a socio-ecological framework as
a means to identify key challenges facing children suffering from cancer in China and their families.
Further, existing support services for this specific population are assessed and recommendations for
additional interventions are made. Various obstacles that interfere with children's medical care are
found at policy, community and institutional levels. For example, social health insurance does not
cover total costs for cancer treatment, which means that many children drop out of care when parents
can no longer afford it. Perceptions that cancer is not treatable may hinder some caregivers accepting
medical care for their child, and China lacks both the facilities and health care professionals for childhood
cancer treatment. Communication with children about their disease is a major issue at the interpersonal
level, and psychological problems among family members are identified as challenges at the
intrapersonal level. As of today, support at the different levels largely derives from the non-governmental
sector, through organisations founded by concerned parents. A comprehensive multi-level approach
from various agents is necessary to further address the identified problems, including provision
of full insurance coverage for treatment, efforts to raise public awareness, and introduction of structured
provider-child communication related to the disease. | |
