Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Health Services

Advisor

Magdeline C. Aagard

Abstract

Abstract Conventional cancer treatment consists of some combination of three therapies: chemotherapy, surgery and radiation. The purpose of this study was to understand why some individuals diagnosed with cancer elected to follow an alternative course of treatment, consisting of fasting on juices or water only rather than, or in addition to, conventional cancer treatment. The theory chosen to guide this study was the Markula Center for Applied Ethics framework for ethical decision making. Research questions were designed to understand the decision-making process of study participants in choosing fasting on juice or water only, rather than, or in addition to, the use of conventional interventions, and specifically to determine what role ethics and cost may have played. The research was a qualitative, phenomenological study, in which data were collected from nine semi-structured interviews. Data analysis consisted of coding the interview transcripts using a priori and open codes, categorizing the codes generated by the framework and data respectively, and then coalescing the resulting categories into themes, to answer the research questions. Themes which emerged from analysis of the data were Emotion-based process elements and Ethics and Logic. Understanding the decision-making process of individuals in this study could help medical professionals explain to patients diagnosed with cancer the treatment options available to them and how to choose ethically for optimum outcomes.

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