Although this was never intended as a part of the process, it should be considered for future research to improve rigour. Participants did receive a report documenting the results of the larger study. Another limitation is that the structure of the LWHP likely influenced the content of the journals, as it included watching the The Living with Hope video and being asked directly to write about hopes and challenges. The Living with Hope video features family caregivers

Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical and palliative patients’ discussion of hope and how they maintain hope. It is 15 minutes in length and was shown after baseline data was collected in the study. It is not known if this film had an influence on the content of the journals. Thus, journals may Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical have been more ‘hopeful’ than if the caregivers had journaled without such prompts. This study is also limited due to the specificity of the targeted group of participants, who were female caregivers living in rural Western Canada, caring for a family member with advanced cancer. The literature on hope is inconclusive, with respect to whether women interpret or view hope differently than men. The caregiving experience may be different for men than women [54], so the findings

of Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical our study may not be applicable to men caregivers. However this research brings forward a novel illustration of how hope is integrated throughout the caregiver’s experience. Conclusions This study has explored the hopes and challenges of rural female family caregivers of persons with advanced cancer. Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical The journal entries participants completed as part of the LWHP provided insight into their daily lived experience,

and highlighted their emotional journey, the various challenges of caregiving, the way they employed self-care strategies, the various hopes they Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical had and what fostered their hope. The concept of “hoping against hope” highlights the existence of tension and the possible co-existing contradictions with hope. At the same time that the participants are hoping for a cure, they are also hoping for their family member to have peace and comfort at the end of life. This research contributes to the much-needed assessment of P/EOL caregiver interventions, specifically those that impact hope and quality of life, and illustrates the value of a narrative approach Org 27569 to both research and practice [37]. ‘Hope against hope’ calls for researchers, health professionals and other supports in P/EOL care to encourage self-care strategies, self-reflection and social support to enhance caregivers’ hope and capacity to cope while caring for someone with a terminal Bosutinib concentration illness. There is an opportunity for health professionals and other P/EOL care supports in various settings to foster a relationship of trust with family caregivers in which their story can be told openly and in which they are holistically supported.