Multidisciplinary support in cancer care: Pair working physician/psychologist in support of children of affected parents by cancer

Supporting children of affected parents by cancer is challenging whether for patients, families and healthcare teams. Several care methods have been developed to support these children (e.g. individual psychological support, support group). However, professionals may feel uncomfortable with their own theoretical and practical limits. Thus, pair working physician/psychologist make sense in order to melt the different expertise and to provide advices, open discussion and remediation in the family behaviors and feelings. The aim is to help parents communicate with their children about the disease in order to respond appropriately to the child's needs and questions. Our study is observational, around fi ve clinical situations. We deal with parental psychological function, family communication, marital function, and parent-child relationship. Most of the time, children of cancer patients live a stressful experience with major psycho emotional impact. Inappropriate coping mechanism can be subjected to misperception and lack of interaction with their parents. The question often expressed is the balance between telling truth and protecting children. However, studies have reported positive effects of interventions around children needs. Thus, the doctor-psychologist pair allows for adaptability of responses family functioning, children and parents, and thus ensures holistic support for the patient with cancer.