The experience of albinism in France: a qualitative study on dyads of parents and their adult child with albinism

BACKGROUND

To date, almost no research on the psychosocial implications of albinism has been conducted in France and an exploration of albinism-related experiences could be beneficial, in order to better understand this condition. The aim of this study was to examine how French people with albinism and their parents live with and adapt to this condition in all the areas of their lives.

METHODS

Semi-structured phone interviews were conducted with 9 parent-child dyads, each participating separately. Participants were recruited by convenience sampling, thanks to the combined efforts of a patient association (Genespoir) and professionals from the partner medical referral centers involved in the project. Dyads in which the individual with albinism had any comorbidity were excluded. The interviews were then transcribed and subjected to in-depth thematic analysis. Two codebooks were constructed in a mirrored process: one for people with albinism; the other for their parents. They were finally merged at the end of the coding step.

RESULTS

Four main categories were identified: personal perceptions and social representations of albinism, difficulties and obstacles encountered by people with albinism, resources and facilitators, and the importance of parent-child functioning. The results indicated that experiences of stigmatization during childhood and adolescence are common and that people with albinism face challenges in adapting to certain obstacles related to their visual impairments (VI) (e.g., inability to drive a car; eye strain...). Parents emerged as one, if not as the main, source of support for people with albinism throughout their development. Although external support systems exist to assist them in various aspects of their lives, some of them primarily rely on their own personal resources to cope.

CONCLUSIONS

This research highlights the importance of a systemic and transdisciplinary approach to make sure families receive the support that best meets their needs.

Hope and relationship dynamics among couples faced with their child's cancer: A dyadic phenomenological interpretative analysis

PURPOSE

The onset of paediatric cancer leads to changes in the functioning of the parental couple. The interactions and interdependence between partners affect their individual and dyadic adjustments. Hope can enable parents to cope with difficulties and alleviate their distress. The aim of this study is to explore how both partners experience their relationship dynamics and hope within the couple.

METHOD

This qualitative study focused on 7 couples whose child was in remission from cancer; each parent was interviewed separately. The semi-structured interviews were subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis.

RESULTS

Three themes were found to characterise the experiences of couples faced with their child's cancer. "Captain and first mate" emphasises the gendered and hierarchical distribution of roles based on the analogy of a crew struggling against the threat of cancer. "The emotional compass" focuses on how emotions guide each partner's attempts to meet their own need for emotional expression and that of their partner. "In the same boat, with divergent hope sails" reflects the complex and diverse ways in which hope and forms of hope are expressed, perceived as a resource which is often precious, sometimes viewed as unthinkable because it reflects the violence associated with the despair of the situation and transferred from one parent to the other.

DISCUSSION

These findings highlight the need to focus on the organisation of role, the interaction of emotional needs and the dynamics of hope within parental dyads to optimise the management of couples faced with their child's cancer.