Study: Some Breast Cancer Survivors Feel Discrimination

Some women suffering from breast cancer feel discriminated against by family and friends or at the workplace, according to researchers at the University of Toronto.

Most women who survive breast cancer do not experience difficulties related to disclosure of their cancer, but a significant minority report negative effects on relationships with friends, family, or work, said Dr. Donna E. Stewart, co-author of the study published in Psycho-Oncology.

Researchers surveyed 378 women who had been cancer free for at least two years. More than two-thirds of the women had disclosed their disease to friends, children, siblings, or partners and 50 percent of them had told co-workers, bosses or supervisors. Most of the women reported that their disclosure brought them support, closer to the people they told or brought them more advice.

However, 16.6 percent of the women reported that their disclosure created distance between them and those they told, and caused family or job-related problems, according to the researchers.

"In addition to the women who had negative experiences following disclosure, it is possible that women who chose not to tell certain people may accurately have predicted the potentially negative results and results of disclosure on relationships or their job," the study added.

Other sources: Psycho-Oncloogy, Center for the Advancement on Health