Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors
Background: Oncological treatments affect the quality of life (QoL), even in the survivorship period. More specifically, extended hormonotherapy is associated with a significant burden of adverse effects. Aim: The aim of the study was to examine breast cancer survivors’ QoL and the impact of extende...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Saudi Journal for Health Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/sjhs.sjhs_110_24 |
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| author | Kim Sadler Sarah Alsaif Ghadeer Alsaffar Shahd Melibari Norah Albedah Rania Abed Salah Meaad Abdullah Alharbi Ruth Evangelista |
| author_facet | Kim Sadler Sarah Alsaif Ghadeer Alsaffar Shahd Melibari Norah Albedah Rania Abed Salah Meaad Abdullah Alharbi Ruth Evangelista |
| author_sort | Kim Sadler |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background:
Oncological treatments affect the quality of life (QoL), even in the survivorship period. More specifically, extended hormonotherapy is associated with a significant burden of adverse effects.
Aim:
The aim of the study was to examine breast cancer survivors’ QoL and the impact of extended hormonotherapy.
Setting and Design:
A cross-sectional design was used in a tertiary care center in Saudi Arabia.
Materials and Methods:
Data were collected through the self-reported Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Breast (FACT-B) with women two or more years posttreatment and between 18 and 75 years.
Statistical Analysis Used:
In addition to descriptive statistics, the mean subscale score was analyzed across participants’ variables using analyses of variance and independent sample t-tests. Multivariate binary logistic regression analyses were employed to assess combined and individual associations with QoL scores.
Results:
Three hundred and thirty-six women with a mean age of 51.4 years (standard deviation [SD] = 10) participated. 43.8% were working posttreatment compared to 45.2% before. 14.3% were taking medication to address anxiety, sleep, or mood issues. The overall QoL score was 107 (SD = 2.4). The lowest score was on the Emotional Well-being Scale. Results indicate an overall good QoL; however, pain, fatigue, anxiety, fear of recurrence, issues with body image, and intimacy were reported by a significant number. Extended hormonal therapy did not affect the results.
Conclusions:
There is a growing number of survivors in need of a better understanding and management of the consequences associated with the disease and its treatment. Cultural factors are to be taken into consideration. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e4ce9a31c6ef40748d8a26b97f78fdec |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2278-1900 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Saudi Journal for Health Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-e4ce9a31c6ef40748d8a26b97f78fdec2025-08-20T03:11:06ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsSaudi Journal for Health Sciences2278-19002025-01-01141727810.4103/sjhs.sjhs_110_24Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivorsKim SadlerSarah AlsaifGhadeer AlsaffarShahd MelibariNorah AlbedahRania Abed SalahMeaad Abdullah AlharbiRuth EvangelistaBackground: Oncological treatments affect the quality of life (QoL), even in the survivorship period. More specifically, extended hormonotherapy is associated with a significant burden of adverse effects. Aim: The aim of the study was to examine breast cancer survivors’ QoL and the impact of extended hormonotherapy. Setting and Design: A cross-sectional design was used in a tertiary care center in Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods: Data were collected through the self-reported Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Breast (FACT-B) with women two or more years posttreatment and between 18 and 75 years. Statistical Analysis Used: In addition to descriptive statistics, the mean subscale score was analyzed across participants’ variables using analyses of variance and independent sample t-tests. Multivariate binary logistic regression analyses were employed to assess combined and individual associations with QoL scores. Results: Three hundred and thirty-six women with a mean age of 51.4 years (standard deviation [SD] = 10) participated. 43.8% were working posttreatment compared to 45.2% before. 14.3% were taking medication to address anxiety, sleep, or mood issues. The overall QoL score was 107 (SD = 2.4). The lowest score was on the Emotional Well-being Scale. Results indicate an overall good QoL; however, pain, fatigue, anxiety, fear of recurrence, issues with body image, and intimacy were reported by a significant number. Extended hormonal therapy did not affect the results. Conclusions: There is a growing number of survivors in need of a better understanding and management of the consequences associated with the disease and its treatment. Cultural factors are to be taken into consideration.https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/sjhs.sjhs_110_24breast cancerfact-b questionnairehormonotherapyintimacysaudi arabiaself-imagesurvivors |
| spellingShingle | Kim Sadler Sarah Alsaif Ghadeer Alsaffar Shahd Melibari Norah Albedah Rania Abed Salah Meaad Abdullah Alharbi Ruth Evangelista Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors Saudi Journal for Health Sciences breast cancer fact-b questionnaire hormonotherapy intimacy saudi arabia self-image survivors |
| title | Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors |
| title_full | Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors |
| title_fullStr | Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors |
| title_short | Quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors |
| title_sort | quality of life and issues related to body image and intimacy in breast cancer survivors |
| topic | breast cancer fact-b questionnaire hormonotherapy intimacy saudi arabia self-image survivors |
| url | https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/sjhs.sjhs_110_24 |
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