CHARACTERIZATION OF CHRONIC PAIN IN WOMEN SUBMITTED TO BREAST CANCER TREATMENT

Authors

  • Leonardo Ribeiro Soares Universidade Federal de Goiás, Centro Avançado para Diagnóstico de Doenças da Mama – Goiania (GO), Brazil.
  • Rosemar Macedo Sousa Rahal Universidade Federal de Goiás, Centro Avançado para Diagnóstico de Doenças da Mama – Goiania (GO), Brazil.
  • Hadirgiton Garcia Gomes de Andrade Universidade Federal de Goiás, Centro Avançado para Diagnóstico de Doenças da Mama – Goiania (GO), Brazil.
  • Luis Fernando Padua Oliveira Universidade Federal de Goiás, Centro Avançado para Diagnóstico de Doenças da Mama – Goiania (GO), Brazil.
  • Nayara Alves de Freitas Lemos Universidade Federal de Goiás, Centro Avançado para Diagnóstico de Doenças da Mama – Goiania (GO), Brazil.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29289/259453942022V32S2047

Keywords:

Breast cancer, Breast-conserving surgery, Mastectomy, Adjuvant radiotherapy, Chronic pain

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to characterize chronic pain in women undergoing surgical treatment for breast
cancer. Methods: This is a cross-sectional, retrospective, hospital-based study. All breast cancer patients undergoing clinical follow-up at a referral hospital in central Brazil were screened. Women with chronic pain after surgical treatment
of breast cancer, defined by the presence of pain after 3 months of surgery, were included in the study. The questionnaires
were applied by the responsible researcher in the form of an interview, which took place in a dedicated office. The McGill
Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) and the visual analog scale (VAS) were used. Results: In all, 99 patients were interviewed, of
which 46 were included in the study. Most patients were between 50 and 59 years old (39.1%), were married (45.7%), were
housewives (58.7%), and had completed high school (45.7%). Arterial hypertension was the most prevalent clinical comorbidity (41.3%), followed by diabetes mellitus (13.0%). A total of 45 (97.8%) patients underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy,
but 22 (47.8%) required axillary lymphadenectomy for some oncological reason; 35 (76.0%) patients underwent chemotherapy (neoadjuvant or adjuvant), and 40 underwent radiotherapy (87.0%). According to the VAS, the mean pain intensity was 5.5 (±2.6). Most patients reported worsening pain with movement, with 26 (52.2%) “sometimes”, and another 14
(30.4%) “always”. In the MPQ, there was a predominance of the sensory domain among the characteristics of chronic pain.
Relaxation techniques (52.2%), stretching (50.0%) and deep breathing (47.8%) were the most mentioned therapeutic measures. Drug treatment was reported by 21 (45.7%) women and acupuncture by only one. Conclusion: In the analyzed population, chronic pain was observed with moderate intensity and with a predominance of sensitive characteristics according to the MPQ. The development of strategies for prevention, early diagnosis, and multidisciplinary treatment can help
reduce chronic pain in breast cancer survivors.

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Published

2026-04-01

How to Cite

Soares, L. R., Rahal, R. M. S., Andrade, H. G. G. de, Oliveira, L. F. P., & Lemos, N. A. de F. (2026). CHARACTERIZATION OF CHRONIC PAIN IN WOMEN SUBMITTED TO BREAST CANCER TREATMENT. Mastology, 32(suppl.2). https://doi.org/10.29289/259453942022V32S2047

Issue

Vol. 32 No. suppl.2 (2022)

Section

E-poster

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Leonardo Ribeiro Soares, Rosemar Macedo Sousa Rahal, Hadirgiton Garcia Gomes de Andrade, Luis Fernando Padua Oliveira, Nayara Alves de Freitas Lemos

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.