Article Text
Abstract
Introduction Surgical treatments may have a negative psychological impact on women’s mental health regarding their body image. The purpose of this study was to comparethe psychological health insights pertaining to objectified body consciousness scores before and after the surgery.
Methods This retrospective qualitative study included 706 breast carcinoma patients who underwent either Breast Conservation Surgery or Total Mastectomy between the years 2021-2023. A validated questionnaire of Objectified Body Consciousnesswas used to obtain responses at diagnosis and at 6 months post-surgery and final scores were calculated for both instances. Two sample t-tests/analysis of variance and Chi-square tests wereused to compare continuous and categorical variables respectively.
Results Out of total 706 breast cancer patients, 402 patients underwent Breast Conservation Surgery and 304 underwent Total Mastectomy procedure. A statistically significant change was seen in the mean Objectified Body Consciousness Score(14.22±15.44) for all patients when compared pre-operatively(72.72±11.38) and post-operatively(60.15±17.58). This change was higher in the Total Mastectomy group(29.38±11.53). Also, statistically significant rise in scores was seen with increasing age.
Conclusion/Implications e could affirmatively conclude in our study that younger breast cancer patients and all patients who underwent a total mastectomy, had more psychological apprehension with the body image post-surgery, signifying these groups should be encouraged by healthcare professionals to reach out for counselling at the earliest.