title: Younger women's experiences of deciding against delayed breast reconstruction post-mastectomy following breast cancer: An interpretative phenomenological analysis.
abstract: Most women do not reconstruct their breast(s) post-mastectomy. The experiences of younger women who maintain this decision, although important to understand, are largely absent in the research literature. This interview-based study uses interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore the experiences of six women, diagnosed with primary breast cancer in their 30s/40s, who decided against delayed reconstruction. Findings reported here focus on one superordinate theme (decision-making) from a larger analysis, illustrating that the women's drive to survive clearly influenced their initial decision-making process. Their tenacity in maintaining their decision is highlighted, despite non-reconstruction sometimes being presented negatively by medical teams. Patient-centred support recommendations are made.
authors.affiliation: University of Derby, UK F.G.Holland@derby.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Fiona
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.affiliation: Imperial College London, UK.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Archer
authors.affiliation: University of Derby, UK.
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Montague
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016462:Mammaplasty / Q000523:psychology*; D008408:Mastectomy; D008875:Middle Aged; D036301:Qualitative Research
keywords: breast cancer; decision-making; interpretative phenomenological analysis; mastectomy; reconstruction