Table 2 Overview of themes and subthemes
Themes and sub-themes | Brief description of sub-themes | Number of patients experiencing the sub-themes |
|---|---|---|
Disrupted gut | ||
The weakened body | Patients suffered from a range of gastrointestinal symptoms which negatively affected their digestion and prevented them from being fully active and participating in everyday activities and social life. | 12 |
Fighting cachexia | Patients struggled to maintain or regain weight. They spent all their energy and time preparing and eating snacks. | 10 |
Re-aligning to the altered body | The patients experienced bodily changes that they were forced to get accustomed to. | 12 |
Recovery work | ||
The value of municipal rehabilitation programmes | Patients worked hard to regain strength and acknowledged the municipal health care centres for helping them do so. | 10 |
Reclaiming the sociality of meals | Patients wanted to go out to restaurants and eat with friends; however, it was overwhelmingly burdensome to have to explain why they only could eat small portions or suddenly had to go to the toilet. | 5 |
Going back to work | Actively employed patients wanted to go back to work as this symbolised normality life as it was before. | 8 |