Neuro

Sharon Reagan 

Lung Cancer 

Impact of Lung Cancer on Young Adults Age 25-30 vs Elderly Adults 65 & Older

Social Isolation will have a significant impact on each age but in different ways. For the elderly population it will be because they may not have a large amount of friends that are living due to their age, and family may not live close enough to visit regularly or they may be confined to a ECF and have little if any social interaction with any one other than staff members. For the 25-30 age they should have support from family since they are still fairly young, but they may find that friends are not comfortable around them anymore because they are not sure how to treat them because of the illness and the patient may be self conscious about being out in public due to their appearance.

Financial impacts can be can be a problem for both age groups due to high medical cost and inability to pay the medical bills that continue even if they are in remission. For the elderly it may cause problems due to fixed incomes and inability to pay for medications. For the 25-30 year olds they may not be able to keep a job, cannot pay mortgage payments or car payments and end up having to move in with friends or family and this can cause stress and hinder the healing process.

Spiritually the elderly will be more likely to look to religious aspects to find peace with their diagnosis, where as young adults who are not active in religious activities may find themselves cursing God and or Jesus or what ever religion they practice for allowing them to become sick in the first place and they turn their back any type of spiritual beliefs. The younger generation may also be involved with criminal or drug activity and not care or believe that spirituality has a thing to do with their current health status. I also believe that with both age groups it depends on the way they were raised and if religion and spirituality has played a lifelong role for the person then they will turn to...