According to the 1 991 Annual Report of the Department of Health and Social
Services of former Bophuthatswana, there were 364 reported malignant
conditions found in women with cancer of the breast and cervix being the most
prevalent. What causes great concern is t.he fact that patients present for the
first time at health facilities during advanced stages of these diseases thus
making the prognosis poor. Black patients in this study were found to present
with cancer of the breast at an earlier age than their white counterparts. In
addition to the above named problems, no facility exists for the treatment of
cancer in the area of study and patients have to be referred to other areas.
It was on the strength of the above observations that the researcher embarked
upon this study to establish the effects of the diagnosis cancer and mastectomy
on the victims. The aims of the study therefore were: to explore and describe
the psycho-social effects of the diagnosis and treatment on Black women;
develop guidelines for oncology nurses and doctors to assist with the adaptation
of these patients to the diagnosis and treatment; and provide information that
could lead to better training of oncology personnel as well as develop a proper
support system to facilitate adjustment of the mastectomised patient to the
disease and its treatment.
Data were collected using the qualitative and quantitative approaches with
individual in-depth interviews forming the main strategy. The findings revealed that
the diagnosis cancer of the breast was equated with death among all respondents.
The mastectomy added more stress for the patient, which was further compounded
by chemo- and radiotherapy. The latter was described as causing more pain than
the tumour itself.
Problems experienced by the patients were reported to include: financial
difficulties; general weakness; fear of recurrence and metastasis; concern for
dependent children and fear of unemployment. All respondents in this study
expressed the need for the formation of a voluntary care group, which could assist
them with adaptation to the disease and its treatment. / Advanced Nursing Sciences / D. Lit. et Phil. (Advanced Nursing Sciences)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/17060 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Kau, Mary. |
| Contributors | Dreyer, J. M.(Johann M.), De Jongh, M |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 1 online resource (xi, 280 leaves) |
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