Meanings of Chronic pain in Breast Cancer Survival

Abstract

Introduction: Chronic pain is a common problem in breast cancer survivors. Objective: Understand the meanings attributed by women breast cancer survivors to the experience of living with chronic pain. Method: To reach the objectives, a qualitative research based on hermeneutic-dialectic was carried out in a reference oncology hospital in Rio de Janeiro. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six long-term breast cancer survivors between July and October 2018. Results: Four broad social meanings are highlighted in the empirical material: pain as a result of treatment; pain as a kinesthetic process; pain as a tribute to the disease suffered; and pain as an expression of affections and attachments. These are narratives that accentuate the experience lived while searching for an explanation for the full pain felt. Survival is experienced as a process of transition, acceptance and construction of new biographical identities that are only possible to be understood and cared for taking into account the biological, emotional, social and spiritual dimensions. Conclusion: The narratives start from a pain as fragmentation, murmur and monologue of the body, to a situation of conviviality, expression of affections and acceptance of pain as a transition to survival. The study reinforces the need for structuring a care line that has as basic core the active and qualified listening of pain narratives for the development of humanized care in cancer survival.