The patient is a 16-year-old male adolescent who is 2 years post successful treatment for cancer. However, he has just learned it has returned and he needs to start chemotherapy again. He and his parents have come in from preliminary laboratory workup. His attitude appears okay when his parents are around. “I beat it once, I’ll do it again.” However, after admission to the unit and he sends his parents home for the night, the nurse walks in and finds him crying. He mentions he was finally going to get to play sports and now this happened.
- What is happening?
- How can the nurse best help this young man?
- What nursing diagnoses are appropriate in this situation?
