Quality of Life in Female Breast Cancer Patients and Survivors in a South African Municipality.

BACKGROUND

Breast cancer diagnosis and treatment processes affect patients physically and mentally, and have an impact on their quality of life, even years after receiving treatment.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study was to determine the quality of life in female breast cancer patients and survivors in a South African context. The municipality within which participants were recruited for this study was Ekurhuleni, based in the Gauteng province, South Africa.

DESIGN

This study followed a cross-sectional research design. Quantitative data was collected.

METHODS

The Quality-of-Life Patient/Cancer Survivor Version (2012) was used to determine participants' quality of life in 4 subscales, namely, physical, psychological, social, and spiritual. The questionnaire was accessible to participants via the online Google Forms platform as well as in hard-copy format at local medical facilities. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to compute statistics, and the level of significance was set at 95% ( < .05).

RESULTS

One hundred female breast cancer patients and survivors from the region of Ekurhuleni, South Africa, took part in this study. The findings demonstrate that the quality-of-life subscale with the highest score was spiritual well-being (6.66 ± 2.07) and the lowest was psychological well-being (4.91 ± 1.93). No significant difference was found between quality of life and type of facility attended. Significant differences were found in quality-of-life ratings between breast cancer patient and breast cancer survivor populations.

CONCLUSION

Breast cancer can result in a compromised quality of life, and with the increased prevalence and survival rate of breast cancer patients, both the short- and long-term effects of the condition and its treatments are heightened.