title: Empowerment needs of women with breast cancer: a qualitative study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Due to the increasing number of women suffering from breast cancer worldwide, promoting the empowerment of these patients is an important factor affecting their survival.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Few studies have investigated the empowerment needs of the breast cancer women, especially in Iran. Therefore, this study was performed to explain the empowerment needs of women with breast cancer in Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this qualitative study, 19 women with breast cancer were interviewed regarding their empowerment needs using the individual open-ended and, in-depth interviews and then the qualitative data were analyzed through content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three main categories of empowerment needs from the participants' perspectives were as follows: 1- information: the initial empowerment plans (timely and comprehensive information, coordination and continuity of information, easy and full-time access to information), 2- beliefs: the approval of the empowerment plans for execution (actuality, trust and hope and new beliefs), and 3- skills: efficient execution of the empowerment plans (communication skills, expression the needs, emotions, questions and use of the internet).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It seems that promoting the empowerment of women with breast cancer is essential. Factors found in this study and also in similar studies, in which empowerment needs are explained in-depth through the experiences of the patients, should be considered and used in the treatment, educational and counseling programs to promote the empowerment of women with breast cancer.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Taleghani
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Masoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bahrami
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Marzeyeh
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Loripoor
authors.affiliation: Medical Education Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, IR Iran.
authors.forename: Alireza
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yousefi
keywords: Breast Cancer; Empowerment; Iran; Women