Att leva med bröstcancer : en litteraturöversikt om kvinnors upplevelser

Sammanfattning: Background: In Sweden, about 30% of the female population suffers from breast cancer. The disease leads to physical and psychosocial problems. The treatment has various side effects such as pain, hair loss and mastectomy. It is then the care staff’s responsibility to guide, advise and contribute with support to the women. Syfte: The aim of this review was to describe women’s experiences of living with breastcancer. Method: A literature review made with the help of ten qualitative articles that were searched for by different inclusion criteria’s in two databases that focus on nursing research and medical research, CINHAL and PUBMED. These ten articles have been analyzed based on Friberg’s analysis method. Results: The content of the articles resulted in five different themes (1) Worries about the diagnosis (2) Fear and pressure (3) Life changes (4) Family support (5) Body changes Conclusion: The results show that breast cancer was a life-changing experience as many aspects of women's lives changed, both positively and negatively. They experienced feelings of, anxiety, confusion, depression and insecurity at the diagnosis of breast cancer as they never thought they would get the disease. Support from family and care staff as well as a good relationship with the nurse in charge was appreciated and encouraged by the women.