Published online Sep 20, 2024. doi: 10.5493/wjem.v14.i3.95565
Revised: May 14, 2024
Accepted: June 11, 2024
Published online: September 20, 2024
Processing time: 138 Days and 13.1 Hours
Breast cancer (BC) is a common cancer among females in Africa. Being infected with BC in Africa seems like a life sentence and brings devastating experiences to patients and households. As a result, BC is comorbid with trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and post-traumatic growth (PTG).
To identify empirical evidence from peer-reviewed articles on the comorbidity trajectories between BC and trauma, BC and PTSD, and BC and PTG.
This review adhered to the PRISMA guidelines of conducting a systematic review. Literature searches of the National Library of Medicine, Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus databases were conducted using search terms developed for the study. The search hint yielded 769 results, which were screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. At the end of the screening, 24 articles were in
BC patients suffered trauma and PTSD during the diagnosis and treatment stages. These traumatic events include painful experiences during and after diagnosis, psychological distress, depression, and cultural stigma against BC patients. PTSD occurrence among BC patients varies across African countries, as this review disclosed: 90% was reported in Kenya, 80% was reported in Zimbabwe, and 46% was reported in Nigeria. The severity of PTSD among BC patients in Africa was based on the test results communicated to the patients. Furthermore, this review revealed that BC patients experience PTG, which involves losing, regaining, and surrendering final control over the body, rebuilding a personified identity, and newfound appreciation for the body.
Patients with BC undergo numerous traumatic experiences during their diagnosis and treatment. Psychological interventions are needed in SSA to mitigate trauma and PTSD, as well as promote PTG.
Core Tip: A high incidence of breast cancer (BC) is common among African females, and a diagnosis thereof is misconstrued as a death sentence because of the low survival rate. BC affects female patients from 25 years to 65 years of age and it is associated with psychological problems such as trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, there is a lack of pooled empirical evidence on the comorbidity of BC, trauma, PTSD, and post-traumatic growth among female African patients.