Mastectomized woman's acquired knowledge about and attitude towards breast reconstruction. A prospective survey on 100 cases.

A prospective, study was carried out on 100 mastectomized women. Each patient was given a questionnaire concerning her awareness of the diagnosis, reaction to the operation, relationship with her own body, cosmetic solution chosen, feminine ideal, sources of information about breast reconstruction, acquired knowledge about it, attitude and motivation towards a possible plastic operation. This survey underlines that the relationship between the doctor and the neoplastic patient is hindered by the patient's lack of knowledge about her disease and about the possibility of rehabilitation by means of reconstructive surgery. 42% of the patients actually ignored the reason for their mutilation, and 53% of the women interviewed were shown not to be sufficiently informed about the possibility of plastic surgery, even though this kind of information has been recognised by many authors as fundamental for the patient's physical, psychological and esthetic welfare. 59% reported to have been informed by sources other than physicians although they are the most qualified. However 82% of all women showed a positive attitude towards the possibility of breast reconstruction: the mutilation experienced seemed to be such a strong motivation that factors such as sociocultural background and acquired knowledge about reconstruction itself were apparently unimportant.