Repercussões emocionais do diagnóstico de câncer de mama: um estudo centrado na pessoa

Abstract

This dissertation consists of two articles: a theoretical essay and an empirical study. The first article is an essay which sought to examine how the Person Centered Approach (PCA) can put it in way of understanding the implications of breast cancer for women. The study shows the need of a humane look and comprehensive care for women with breast cancer, allowing a different preventive and appropriate view to the people characteristics as once proposed in the basic premises of the Unified Health System. Essay 2 sought to examine and understand women emotional reactions in the course of breast cancer investigation and its impact on diagnosis communication. This is a qualitative study design with multiple case studies based from the PCA theoretical background. The participants were three women aged between 46 and 54 and also Basic Health Unit users from a city in the countryside of Santa Catarina. The participants’ selection was carried out by convenience. To collect the data it was used a sociodemographic data and two semi-structured interviews which were taped and verbatim transcribed. After a comprehensive description and analysis of each case, the data were organized into themes and four categories were identified: 1) From the disease investigation period to the diagnosis definition; 2) Disease perception; 3) Diagnosis communication and impact; 4) Relationship between professionals, clients and their families. The results showed that from diagnosis suspicion to confirmation, women go through a difficult period and they present several reactions such as: loss of life meaning, insecurity, distress, anxiety, helplessness, fear of death which impacts on their emotional, physical and social state. In addition, the study has found other aggravating factors to their health as lack of information, lack of support from family and healthcare team, access difficulties to treatment and delays in the system which have a harmful effect on women and also delay the disease diagnosis reducing the chances of a cure. The study highlights the importance of a person-centered approach and not only in the disease itself, focused on a humanized service with strategies that provide more positive actions in relation to care, prevention and treatment of women's health.