Impact of mastectomy and breast-conserving surgery on quality of life of women after breast cancer

DOI: 10.15343/0104-7809.20174104703710

Abstract

Breast cancer is public health problem, in Brazil, it is estimated 57,960 new cases for the biennium of 2016/2017. Conservative surgery is considered the procedure of choice in the initial stage, including tumor removal involving a border of normal tissue, with preservation of breast tissue. While mastectomy, or non-conservative surgery, includes the removal of the entire breast tissue, with the removal of the pectoralis major and minor. Surgical interventions performed in women with breast cancer can cause physical, emotional/psychological, social and sexual repercussions that generate negative impact in their life. Considering that, this study was conducted over the hypothesis: what is the impact of breast cancer removal surgery in quality of life of women from São José dos Campos and Jacareí cities, aiming to recognize the variables that affect their quality of daily life, and to improve the assistance offered during physical therapy. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the quality of life among women underwent mastectomy and breast-conserving surgery for breast cancer and how it could impact their socio-demographic aspects. This was a transversal descriptive study with exploratory character. The sample consisted of 105 women post breast cancer with mean age of 55.4 ± 11.1 years old, divided into two groups according to the kind of surgery performed. It was used the quality of life questionnaire SF-36 “Short-Form Health Survey” and a socio-demographic questionnaire. The statistical analysis of variance was performed with Kruskal-Wallis test, considering the significance level (p≤0.05). There was no significant difference between the groups evaluated in relation to domains: functional capacity (p=0.56), limitations on physical aspects (p=0.40), pain (p=0.69), General State of health (0.70), vitality (p=0.25), social aspects (p=0.23), limitations on emotional aspects (p=0.78), mental health (p=0.28). In conclusion, mastectomy and breastconserving surgery do not show statistical difference in relation to quality of life; however, both techniques associated to the socio-demographic aspects can negatively affect the quality of life of women after breast cancer.