Distinctive psychological and social experiences of women choosing prophylactic oophorectomy for cancer prevention.
Rachel Meadows, Tasleem J Padamsee, Electra D Paskett
PMID 29319429WHAT IT FOUND
Women choosing risk-reducing ovary removal described intense cancer worry; those who had surgery felt protected, but some still worried.
Coping was harder when they felt attached to their ovaries, lacked family support, or could not share the decision with clinicians.
Key findings
01All eight women choosing risk-reducing ovary removal were motivated by intense cancer worry, and the four who had already had surgery felt protected, though three continued to worry about breast or general cancer.
02Women who felt strong attachment to their ovaries found the decision harder and reported lasting psychological difficulty after surgery, while women whose surgery treated a current gynecologic problem reported no coping difficulty.
03When clinicians did not share decision-making or were unwilling to discuss risk-reducing ovary removal, women struggled to access the surgery; some regained confidence only after seeing another clinician.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 12 women were analysed, and the RRBSO group was mostly highly educated white women while the comparison group was mostly Black, so the themes may not transfer to other racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic groups. The comparison group had only 4 women, and the RRBSO group mixed 5 women who had already had surgery with 3 who had only decided, so post-surgical coping is based on a small subgroup. This is a qualitative study of experiences, so it cannot show whether any support, education, or decision-making approach improves outcomes.
Declared interests
The article is tagged as NIH extramural and non-U.S. government research support; interview participants received a $25 Amazon gift card. No authors' conflict-of-interest declaration appears in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that risk-reducing ovary removal reliably improves psychological well-being or that education and support interventions work. This is a small qualitative study of 12 women's experiences, not a test of treatment effects.