Funding from KWF for palliative cancer patients in meaning-making at home
July 3, 2024
The diagnosis of incurable cancer profoundly disrupts patients’ lives, often causing existential crises and a sense of lost purpose. The KWF-funded project “In Search of Stories” (ISOS) aimed to support these patients by partnering them with spiritual counsellors and professional artists. This co-creation process proved highly beneficial. New funding from KWF Dutch Cancer Society supports further development of the intervention reaching more patients through digital means.
“In Search of Stories” (ISOS) supports palliative cancer patients by partnering them with spiritual counsellors and professional artists who together engage in deep conversations about life’s significant events. However, the physical demands of in-person visits limits participation for many patients. To address this, the intervention will be further developed to take place right at home: ISOS-at-home.
New funding from KWF Dutch Cancer Society will help make ISOS-at-home become a reality. The project aims to offer digital access to the meaning-making process that helps the patients give shape to their lives and express their stories, thereby improving the quality of life for a broader group of palliative cancer patients.
Developing ISOS-at-Home will result in an online exhibition with input from patients, artists, spiritual counsellors, and oncologists. Through an audio tour, visitors can explore the creative processes and personal meanings behind each piece, fostering introspection about their own life stories.
Support by IXA
IXA Amsterdam UMC has been gladly supporting Hanneke van Laarhoven , Head of the Department of Medical Oncology at Amsterdam UMC, and team, with the development of the intervention under the name of ISOS. IXA Amsterdam UMC has expertise in acquiring funding, advice on organizational and legal matters, and impact and/or business development strategies.
Video
From January 11 to February 16, 2024, nineteen of the 25 artworks created during ISOS were exhibited in Amsterdam UMC. Look at the video by the Amsterdam UMC.
Image: still from Amsterdam UMC video about In Search of Stories or ISOS
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