Narratives of Survivorship: A Study of Breast Cancer Pathographies and Their Place in Cancer Rehabilitation

• Main Authors: Åsa Mohlin, Katarina Bernhardsson
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-07-01
• Series: Current Oncology
• Subjects: breast cancer; cancer survivorship; rehabilitation; pathographies; patient narratives; qualitative
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/28/4/249
• ISSN: 1198-0052; 1718-7729

The focus on cancer rehabilitation has increased, but breast cancer patients still report unmet rehabilitation needs. Since many women today will live long beyond their diagnosis, there are multiple challenges for the healthcare system in supporting these women in their new life situation. A more individualized approach is seen as necessary to optimize the rehabilitation for survivors. Pathographies, i.e., autobiographical or biographical accounts of experiences of illness, expose us to personal accounts of the journey through illness and treatment, offering us details, emotions, phrasings, and imagery from an individual perspective. In this literary study, we have analyzed two contemporary Swedish-speaking pathographies about breast cancer. In our analysis, we have presented perspectives on survivorship, and the authors’ ways of conveying their breast cancer experiences through narrative. The pathographies envision the prominent impact the breast cancer has on the authors’ lives. Narratives of survivorship have the potential to complement the more general medical knowledge with their nuanced and multifaceted stories of breast cancer. Learning from this type of material may improve the understanding of the complexity of breast cancer survivorship issues. This may be a way to become more attuned to identifying individual needs and preferences of breast cancer patients.