The objective of this study was to understand the knowledge, concerns and expectations of patients suffering from breast cancer in relation to mastectomy. Interviews were performed with 11 women before their being submitted to surgery at the Hospital das Clínicas in Fortaleza (Ceará state) on December 2008. The hermeneutic-dialectical method was used for discourse analysis, and three theme categories were defined: Knowledge about the surgery, Feelings and expectations surrounding mastectomy, and Removing the breast. It was found that women go through a stressful preoperative period, lack knowledge about the surgery, experience anxiety and fear of what they should expect, as well as feelings of panic and shock before their breast is removed. It is, therefore, observed that the health team caring for those patients has an important role in education and in providing emotional support so as to minimize the tragedy those women are experiencing.
Mastectomy; Knowledge; Emotions; Preoperative care; Perioperative nursing