Understanding Breast Cancer From the Patients' Perspective

Abstract

Objectives: We performed this study to seek what patients think about their diagnosis, treatment process and survi vorship. Methods: We evalued 125 breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy in a descriptive and prospective study using a well-structured questionnaire. Results: Most of the patients had information about breast cancer screening at the time of the questionnaire (57.6%), but the proportion of those who had prior knowledge of the disease was low (29.6%). While the most frequent sign of breast cancer was reported to be a palpable mass (53.6%), the most frequent detection method was breast self examination (67.2%). The most frequent adverse effect of chemotherapy were reported to be hair loss (98.4%). Patients’ expectations regarding the disease and adverse events were mostly stated as “I will be completely cured” (79.2% and 53.6%, respectively). Etiological factor most frequently accepted by the patients were stress (85.6%). Most of the pa tients received support from their families during the course of the disease (91.2%). Conclusion: This study provides important new information for every stage of the fight against breast cancer from the perspective of cancer patients. These findings are useful for new programs and clinical decision-making.