Breast Cancer Rehabilitation

Currently, cancer rehabilitation is concerned with many broad areas of human function such as physical, psychologic, social, and vocational activities. The major goal of contemporary cancer rehabilitation is to help each patient achieve maximal function in all of these areas within the limitations imposed by the disease or its treatment. Patients with breast cancer have unique rehabilitation needs. As the most common cancer occurring in woman, breast cancer also has a high frequency of both physical and psychological problems that follow primary breast cancer treatment. Regardless of the type of treatment, the patient must face psychosocial and cosmetic rehabilitation problems relating to the loss of the breast (Ganz, Schag & Heinrich, 1990, p. 888).

Restoration of physical appearance is very important for the woman who has undergone mastectomy. Sexuality and body image are often affected by breast cancer surgery, a

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urrence did not occur. Those who underwent lumpectomy did not express more fear of cancer than did patients who underwent mastectomy (Lasry & Margolese, 1992, p. 2111). Patients who underwent several operations reported a greater fear of cancer recurrence and a worse body image (a similar condition was found consistently after mastectomy). It was concluded from this data that the fear of cancer recurrence was not because a mastectomy was radical, but because it followed another breast surgical intervention, whether it was a radical mastectomy or a lumpectomy. In addition, it was also found that radiation therapy was not related to depressive symptoms in patients, as previously hypothesized, but multiple operations were. This study demonstrated that the expected trade-off between breast conservation and fear of cancer recurrence did not occur. The importance of this finding lies in counseling patients who face surgery for primary breast cancer because 10-year follow-up results have shown that lumpectomy and radiation therapy offer the same chance for survival as mastectomy (Lasry & Margolese, 1992, p. 2115). Subtleties in the way information about the types of treatment available are presented to patients can either mitigate
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1536
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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