For some decades childhood cancer has been considered a fatal disease. However, with improvements in therapeutic procedures and early detection methods, the number of children who survive is increasing, with the care becoming directed toward living with cancer as well as toward the needs of these survivors. This study aimed to comprehend, through phenomenological analysis, the feelings that children, who are finishing their cancer treatment, attributed to their future. Six interviews were conducted with children aged eight to thirteen years and from the convergences and divergences in their reports the categories of analysis emerged. The content analysis of the reports revealed that when the treatment is finished and the child has no disease symptoms the old references used at the time of treatment still remain for some time. The children spoke about their past and made assumptions regarding what might happen. They expressed the desire to regain their prior physical appearance, and resume the activities that were interrupted or impeded by the disease. Throughout this process they were faced with the life and death paradox, yet managed to maintain a positive outlook for the future, aiming to resume the life project and enjoy a range of possibilities with the return to health.
Child; Neoplasms; Survival rate