Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To elucidate experiences and coping strategies among adults in the surveillance of indeterminate pulmonary nodules detected with CT in the population-based Swedish CardioPulmonary bioImage Study (SCAPIS). DESIGN: A qualitative study of conventional content analysis. SETTINGS: The study was conducted at a university hospital in a southern region of Sweden. The SCAPIS setting is similar to the first round of a population-based lung cancer screening programme. PARTICIPANTS: Participants in SCAPIS who had experienced psychosocial consequences of the surveillance were eligible. Participants of both genders, current, former and non-smokers and of different follow-ups in the surveillance were included. Face-to-face semi-structured interviews with 19 participants were performed using an interview guide with open-ended questions. The participants were aged 56-68 years. Nine were women, 6 and 13 were non-smokers and smokers or former smokers, respectively, and all participants had undergone at least one follow-up of the lungs in the surveillance programme. RESULTS: The results depicted an emotional and mental journey for the participants from being distressed when informed about the need of surveillance, and realising their risks of getting sick if they did not take care of their own health, to eventually gathering the strength to cope with the situation, so the surveillance was finally valued with trust and satisfaction. The experiences and coping strategies in the surveillance programme developed a revelation of the value of health consciousness among the participants. CONCLUSION: The study results demonstrated that a surveillance programme of pulmonary nodules might develop health consciousness among people. Still, some individuals might experience psychosocial consequences of the surveillance of indeterminate nodules. Therefore, healthcare professionals should be facilitated to perform person-centred communication to support individuals under surveillance. Preventive care to engage individuals as partners in the management of their own health should receive more attention and needs to be explored.