The impact on body image and quality of life in breast cancer patients
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Updated: May 22, 2025

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design
Published on: May 31, 2021
Andressa Kasse Figueiro Mastrangelli1, Vânia Lopes Pinto1, Simone Elias1
1Universidade Federal de São Paulo. São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
Objectives:
to evaluate the quality of life and body image in women with breast cancer during chemotherapy, before and after interventions targeting body image.
Methods:
we conducted a prospective cohort study with 47 women, utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data analysis.
Results:
in the semi-structured interviews, 52.7% of the recommendations were deemed highly beneficial for the patients. After chemotherapy, 25.53% were dissatisfied with their body image, and 89.4% expressed concern about hair loss. Additionally, 97.9% of participants emphasized the importance of counseling tools in cancer treatment. We observed significant changes in body image scale scores and physical health (p<0.001), indicating an improvement in body image perception despite a decline in physical health when comparing pre- and post-chemotherapy results.
Conclusions:
the scarcity of Brazilian publications on body image is noted, underscoring the role of healthcare professionals in interdisciplinary approaches to enhance clinical practices.
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