Early adulthood uprooted: transitoriness in young women with breast cancer

Young women with breast cancer face a more aggressive disease and lower survival rate compared with those who are older, thereby confronting the potential finitude of life or transitoriness at a time when they are establishing their careers, developing partnerships, and building families. Little is known about the perspectives of young women with breast cancer in how they consider issues of their own mortality. Patients with stage I to III breast cancer aged 39 years and younger who were diagnosed within the last year (N = 16) were included in this qualitative study, which was a secondary analysis of texts written during an expressive writing intervention. Thematic analysis was done by 2 researchers, who reached consensus in coding and theme identification. Nine of the 16 participants (56%) wrote about their mortality (transitoriness). Three themes (being remembered, landscape of emotions and perspectives, and omnipresence of life's finitude) and 10 subthemes were identified from the rich narrative texts. Despite early-stage diagnosis and the beginning phases of adulthood, young women with breast cancer contemplate their mortality and its potential repercussions on their loved ones and their careers. Oncology professionals need to be sensitive to these concerns and provide opportunities for discussion and/or referrals for their young patients as they grapple with such potentially overwhelming issues.