Caregiving for 11 years during her husband’s prostate cancer (Dianne’s story)

March 1, 2011

In this video, Dianne talks about caring for her husband, Doug, near the end of his life, after 11 years with prostate cancer

Watch as Dianne talks about caregiving for her husband, Doug, during his 11 years with prostate cancer which metastasized to his bones. This video was shot near the end of his life, when he was in palliative care.

Dianne shares the difficult emotions that she’s faced, like the times of terror, and the new ones she’s feeling. She expresses her gratitude that she and Doug can talk and be honest with one another, especially over big decisions like bringing a hospital bed into their home.

She talks about needing to take care of herself and to get both of them away from cancer at times. She also talks about her worries and needs for surviving her husband.

In two other videos, Doug shares his experiences during treatment and with palliative care.

There’s so many emotions that you feel and it’s okay to feel any of those emotions — they’re all normal. Even if you think you’re going crazy… all those emotions even those really sad, scary emotions are okay to have.

Watch the video of Dianne talking about caregiving for her husband over 11 years

The Partnership’s Person-Centred Perspective initiative is committed to improving the patient experience. We are working with partners across Canada to find the best ways to offer a person-centred perspective throughout a person’s cancer journey and to help information flow throughout. The impact of a cancer diagnosis goes far beyond the physical disease. It affects every aspect of a person’s life. The initiative has focused on reporting about the patient experience, and giving health-care providers patient-centred tools and resources, which have been validated and standardized.

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