This research intended to analyze the self-perception of sexuality of six 37 to 55 year old women who had been submitted to radical mastectomy one and a half to eight years before. For this analysis, the author chose the technique of content analysis, according to which the following categories were identified: information about the disease, reaction to the diagnosis, relationship doctor-patient, my body and I, somebody else's look and I, looking at herself and love affairs. The analysis of these categories showed that after the mastectomy the women developed some limitation and difficulty in handling certain situations, which involved the exposition of their body. Despite their fears, however, some women generated new ways to understand and express their sexuality, giving new impulse to their daily relationships.
Sexuality; mastectomy; disease coping; breast cancer