Background: Mothers diagnosed with breast cancer describe daughters as a critical source of support. Talking about breast cancer is especially distressing and challenging for mothers and their adolescent-young adult (AYA) daughters.
Objective: The over-arching study aim was to generate findings to integrate into an intervention to enhance diagnosed mothers' and AYA daughters' communication skills by identifying approaches they find helpful when talking about cancer.
Methods: We recruited 27 women (12 dyads). Diagnosed mothers and their AYA daughters (aged 18-29) participated in individual, in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Transcripts were thematically analyzed. Mothers'/daughters' perspectives were compared/ triangulated.
Results: Both mothers and daughters identified 3 approaches that helped them navigate cancer communication: (mothers) initiate conversations, keep communication positive, and limit cancer conversations. Only mothers reported it was helpful to downplay the seriousness of cancer. Only daughters identified it was important for them to reframe their perspective of mothers' disclosures.
Conclusions: Findings provide clinicians like nurses and families with a "psychosocial map" of communication approaches and associated strategies mothers and AYA daughters can use to talk about breast cancer in ways that promote daughters' comfort and/or alleviate distress.
Implications for practice: Findings capture communication skills to focus on when tailoring developmentally focused interventions targeting diagnosed mothers and AYA daughters. Nurses can translate findings into practice to help patients talk to AYA daughters about cancer, thereby promoting a family-centered cancer care approach. What Is Foundational: AYA daughters are especially distressed talking about cancer with their diagnosed mothers. They can both use communication strategies to enhance their communal coping.
Keywords: adolescent-young adult; breast cancer; coping; mother-daughter communication; openness.