{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,17]],"date-time":"2025-10-17T00:18:57Z","timestamp":1760660337724,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":41,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,16]],"date-time":"2025-10-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1760572800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Children"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Parenting a child with a chronic illness such as cancer presents distinct psychological challenges that often disrupt normative parenting patterns. Parents frequently struggle to maintain boundaries in response to their child\u2019s heightened emotional needs, leading to overprotective or permissive behaviors. This study revisits Winnicott\u2019s theory of the \u201cgood enough parent\u201d and explores its application in the context of pediatric oncology. We aim to examine how a psychodynamic framework can be integrated with evidence-based practices to support parental functioning and promote child resilience during cancer treatment. Methods: This conceptual paper employs a qualitative, theory-driven case study approach. We analyze the case of a 6.5-year-old girl diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), focusing on the evolving dynamics between the child\u2019s regressive behaviors and the parents\u2019 emotional responses. Winnicott\u2019s developmental model is expanded to conceptualize parenting as a continuous balance between responsiveness and structure. Clinical dialogues illustrate the therapeutic process of guiding parents toward a more adaptive stance. Results: The analysis highlights how permissive parenting, driven by parental guilt and fear, may initially reduce child distress, but can inadvertently reinforce emotional dysregulation and dependency. The application of a dialectical interpretation of Winnicott\u2019s theory allowed for a therapeutic shift, supporting parents in setting empathic yet firm boundaries. Conclusions: A balanced, dialectical approach to parenting\u2014one that integrates emotional attunement with appropriate demands\u2014can enhance a child\u2019s psychological resilience during cancer treatment. Incorporating psychodynamic insights into clinical practice can help professionals guide families toward more adaptive, developmentally supportive caregiving strategies.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/children12101395","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,16]],"date-time":"2025-10-16T12:17:02Z","timestamp":1760617022000},"page":"1395","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Navigating Parenting in Pediatric Oncology: Merging Psychodynamic Theory and Evidence-Based Practice"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1144-2272","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yael L. E.","family":"Ankri","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychology, Ariel University, Ariel 40700, Israel"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5387-5183","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Amichai","family":"Ben-Ari","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychology, Ariel University, Ariel 40700, Israel"},{"name":"Israel Center for Addiction and Mental Health (ICAMH), Hebrew University, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem 9190500, Israel"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"399","DOI":"10.1007\/s10567-014-0174-2","article-title":"Posttraumatic Stress Following Acute Medical Trauma in Children: A Proposed Model of Bio-Psycho-Social Processes During the Peri-Trauma Period","volume":"17","author":"Marsac","year":"2014","journal-title":"Clin. 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