Table 3.

Strategies for handling cancer

Category	Sub-category	mentioned by
Repression	Repress thoughts of cancer	a, b
	No talking about deterioration and death	a, b
	Cope on my own	a, b
	Distraction in general, avoidance of social media	a, b
Positive attitude	In general, towards therapy	a, b
	Comparison: other patients more distressed	a, b
	Hold on to plans and aims for the future	a, b
	Openness of handling the illness	a, b
	Cancer as a challenge	b
	Irony and humor	b
Strong focus on the present	Live from one day to the other	a, b
	Live as usual	a, b
	Do the best of life	a
	Relish every left day	b
	No changes	a
	Switch off, be active	b
Adjustment of life terms	Hurry less, relax	a, b
	Talking to cancer, take over control	a, b
	New tasks: more praying, documentation	a, b

a = patients; b = relatives