Psychological Adaptation, Body Image Distress, and Quality of Life Among Women After Mastectomy: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
Keywords:
Mastectomy, Breast Cancer Survivors, Psychological Adaptation, Body Image Distress, Quality of Life, Interpretative Phenomenological AnalysisAbstract
Objective: This study aimed to explore the lived experiences of psychological adaptation, body image distress, and quality of life among women after mastectomy.
Methods and Materials: This qualitative study was conducted using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis among 14 women in Canada who had undergone unilateral or bilateral mastectomy for breast cancer. Participants were selected through purposive sampling from oncology survivorship networks, breast cancer support organizations, and community-based patient advocacy groups. Data were collected using a demographic and clinical information form and individual semi-structured interviews. Interviews explored women’s emotional responses to mastectomy, changes in body image, femininity, sexuality, relational experiences, coping strategies, and perceived quality of life. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed through repeated reading, exploratory noting, development of experiential statements, identification of personal experiential themes, and synthesis of group experiential themes.
Findings: Interpretative analysis inferred five interconnected experiential themes. First, mastectomy disrupted the embodied self by altering bodily familiarity, femininity, and self-continuity. Second, body image distress emerged through mirror avoidance, clothing-related anxiety, fear of social visibility, and concerns about sexuality and attractiveness. Third, psychological adaptation was inferred as a nonlinear process involving grief, acceptance of survival, bodily relearning, identity reconstruction, and regaining control. Fourth, relational experiences shaped adjustment, as supportive partners, family members, peers, and healthcare professionals facilitated emotional integration, whereas silence or insensitive responses intensified distress. Fifth, quality of life was reconstructed through the interaction of physical limitations, fear of recurrence, daily functioning, intimacy, social participation, and renewed life priorities.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that post-mastectomy adjustment is a complex embodied and relational process rather than a simple transition from illness to recovery. Women’s quality of life after mastectomy is shaped by how they interpret bodily change, negotiate body image distress, receive social support, and reconstruct identity after breast cancer treatment. Survivorship care should therefore integrate psychological support, body image counseling, relational support, sexual health discussion, and rehabilitation services.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Rhys Llewelyn (Author); David Tremblay; Thomas Declerck (Author)
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