The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

The experiences of hot flushes after breast cancer

The experiences of hot flushes after breast cancer
The experiences of hot flushes after breast cancer
As survival from breast cancer increases, there is a corresponding rise in the number of women living with the long-term consequences of its treatment. Distressing menopausal hot flushes occur in many of these women. This article reports on interviews conducted with 8 women, exploring the experience of hot flushes after breast cancer. Women's accounts of hot flushes varied from being a mild sensation to an intensely unpleasant sensation affecting the whole body and accompanied by drenching perspiration. Flushes affected all aspects of the women's lives, including sleeping, clothing, social situations, intimate relationships, and ability to work. Emotionally, women talked about being out of control. Having cancer and menopause simultaneously made it more difficult for the women to cope, and cancer treatment could cause flushing. The women used many strategies to help relieve their difficulties. Some resorted to hormone replacement therapy, whereas others turned to herbal medications and other alternative interventions such as acupuncture. Most women adopted behavioral strategies to try to regain control. Ultimately, they found that control was gained by attitude of mind. Cognitive behavioral techniques may enhance the sense of control and contribute to coping during hot flushes.
breast cancer, flushes, menopause
0162-220X
E19-E26
Fenlon, D.R.
52f9a9f1-1643-449c-9856-258ef563342c
Rogers, A.E.
c6688bec-eca9-4c98-b6ac-2189f0d5290f
Fenlon, D.R.
52f9a9f1-1643-449c-9856-258ef563342c
Rogers, A.E.
c6688bec-eca9-4c98-b6ac-2189f0d5290f

Fenlon, D.R. and Rogers, A.E. (2007) The experiences of hot flushes after breast cancer. Cancer Nursing, 30 (4), E19-E26.

Record type: Article

Abstract

As survival from breast cancer increases, there is a corresponding rise in the number of women living with the long-term consequences of its treatment. Distressing menopausal hot flushes occur in many of these women. This article reports on interviews conducted with 8 women, exploring the experience of hot flushes after breast cancer. Women's accounts of hot flushes varied from being a mild sensation to an intensely unpleasant sensation affecting the whole body and accompanied by drenching perspiration. Flushes affected all aspects of the women's lives, including sleeping, clothing, social situations, intimate relationships, and ability to work. Emotionally, women talked about being out of control. Having cancer and menopause simultaneously made it more difficult for the women to cope, and cancer treatment could cause flushing. The women used many strategies to help relieve their difficulties. Some resorted to hormone replacement therapy, whereas others turned to herbal medications and other alternative interventions such as acupuncture. Most women adopted behavioral strategies to try to regain control. Ultimately, they found that control was gained by attitude of mind. Cognitive behavioral techniques may enhance the sense of control and contribute to coping during hot flushes.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: July 2007
Keywords: breast cancer, flushes, menopause

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 47629
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/47629
ISSN: 0162-220X
PURE UUID: 9ec9c01a-e963-4170-9404-deb94777ee9b

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 06 Aug 2007
Last modified: 22 Jul 2022 20:55

Export record

Contributors

Author: D.R. Fenlon
Author: A.E. Rogers

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×