Differences between women who have and have not undergone breast reconstruction after mastectomy due to breast cancer

Figures & data

Table I. Demographic characteristics of the sample (n=126) and comparisons between the Breast Reconstruction and non-Breast Reconstruction group.

Demographic data	Total	Non-BR^1 n=95	BR^2 n=31	p-value
Age mean (SD) n=126	61 (±10.6)	64 (± 9.7)	52 (± 8.4)	<0.001
Living condition before mastectomy n=123 (%)
Cohabiting	102 (83)	78 (84)	24 (80)	0.624
Living condition after the mastectomy n= 123 (%)
Cohabiting	91 (73)	69 (75)	22 (71)	0.658
Education n=125 (%)
≥ 10 years of education	70 (56)	46 (49)	24 (77)	0.007
Employment n= 125 (%)
Being employed	74 (59)	48 (53)	25 (81)	0.029
Treatment n= 126^3 (%)
Mastectomy alone	42 (33)	30 (32)	12 (39)	0.465
Chemotherapy (CT)	25 (20)	16(17)	9 (29)	0.139
Radiotherapy (RT)	64 (51)	49 (52)	15 (48)	0.758
Endocrine	54 (43)	44 (46)	10 (32)	0.170

¹Non-BR=women who had not undergone breast reconstruction. ²BR=women who had undergone breast reconstruction. ³More than one option could have been chosen.

Table II. Comparison between the Breast Reconstruction and non-Breast Reconstruction group regarding mean scores for single items and the total index score for each factor in part 4 “Body Image” of the Life After Mastectomy Questionnaire

	Non-BR^1 n=92 mean (SD)	BR^2n=31 mean (SD)	p-value
Attractiveness
I feel as attractive now as I did before the mastectomy.	4.1 (±1.9)	4.8 (±1.7)	0.063
I feel as content with how my body looks now as I did before the mastectomy.	4.3 (±1.9)	4.9 (±1.6)	0.094
I feel as feminine now as I did before the mastectomy.	3.8 (±2.0)	4.4 (±1.8)	0.133
I feel as sexually attractive now as I did before the mastectomy.	4.0 (±1.9)	4.8 (±1.6)	0.043
Index score for factor attractiveness^3 (range 4–24)	16.2 (±6.9)	18.9 (±5.8)	0.035
Body disclosure
I am more prone to hide my body from my partner after the mastectomy.	1.9 (±1.3)	2.8 (±1.8)	0.022
I am more prone to hide my body from my children/grandchildren after the mastectomy.	2.3 (±1.5)	2.8 (±1.7)	0.113
After the mastectomy I am uncomfortable during sexual intimacy.	2.3 (±1.5)	2.6 (±1.4)	0.464
Index score for factor body disclosure^3 (range 3–18)	6.6 (±3.6)	8.2 (±4.0)	0.043
Relational comfort
I feel as interesting in physical contact like hugging now as I did before the mastectomy.	2.5 (±1.7)	2.4 (±1.7)	0.606
My partner feels as sexual interested in me as before the mastectomy.	2.4 (±1.5)	2.8 (±1.3)	0.825
I feel as comfortable now with family/friends as I did before the mastectomy.	2.4 (±1.8)	2.3 (±1.5)	0.776
Index score for factor relational comfort^3 (range 3–18)	7.3 (±4.0)	7.0 (±3.3)	0.674
Scar avoidance
I avoid looking at my mastectomy scars.	1.7 (±1.3)	1.9 (±1.5)	0.429
I am afraid touching the mastectomy scars.	1.4 (±1.0)	1.3 (±1.0)	0.828
Index score for factor scar avoidance^3 (range 3–18)	3.1 (±1.9)	3.3 (±2.2)	0.672

¹Non-BR=women who had not undergone breast reconstruction. ²BR=women who had undergone breast reconstruction. ³Higher index score on each factor indicates a negative impact of the mastectomy.

Table III. Multiple logistic regression analysis of factors associated with breast reconstruction/non-Breast Reconstruction.

	Odds ratio	95% confidence interval	p-value
Age	0.884	0.832–0.940	<0.001
Attractiveness	0.913	0.835–1.000	0.049
Sexual interest	5.538	1.772–17.307	0.003

Model Cox and Snell R2 = 0.29, concordance between observed and predicted value = 73.2.