Impact of emotional trauma on women with breast cancer in hospital care

Impact du traumatisme émotionnel

Abstract

Currently, cancer is one of the leading causes of death and a major obstacle to increasing life expectancy in all countries of the world. Experiencing stressful events can alter the body's internal homeostasis, triggering various molecular and immunological responses, affecting the immune system and making it more vulnerable to the onset of diseases, especially when emotions are not psychically elaborated. The aim of this study was to analyze the impact of emotional trauma on the onset and/or worsening of the clinical picture in the treatment of women with breast cancer in tertiary care. Four patients from the Mastology Service of a hospital in the state of Rio de Janeiro who reported emotional trauma associated with the diagnosis and treatment of the disease were interviewed. A non-structured interview was conducted, guided by an invisible script. The collected data were subjected to thematic content analysis, which aims to identify core meanings that make up a set of references and values ​​present in the subject’s discourse. After transcribing the interviews, three categories of analysis were identified, namely: (a) I froze my heart: refers to not elaborating feelings of an emotional trauma; (b) I care, therefore I don't think: refers to focusing attention on caring for others so as not to think about one's own suffering and illness; e (c) everything is fine: usual response pattern that corresponds to the effort to maintain that everything is fine, despite the pain and side effects of the treatment; suffering in solitude. Analyzing the results from a gender perspective, we can identify that the three categories of analysis constructed have a direct relationship with aspects of women's gender social role, namely: caring for others (I care, therefore I don't think) and repression of negative emotions (I froze my heart; everything is fine).