Imagining one’s personal future in women undergoing treatment for breast cancer: an exploratory study

ABSTRACT

We assessed self-defining future projections (SDFPs) in women with breast cancer (BC) and their relationships with disease characteristics and quality of life. Forty women with BC in the course of treatment and 50 controls were asked to generate SDFPs and completed questionnaires for depression and anxiety symptoms and quality of life. There was no group difference regarding specificity, meaning making, probability of produced future events, and the experience of a sense of personal continuity within SDFPs. BC patients’ SDFPs were less distant in the future and characterised by more narratives about life threatening events and fewer narratives about future achievements. Chemotherapy was related to narratives about life threatening events and BC. Patients undergoing breast reconstruction reported fewer life-threatening events related to their cancer. Lower quality of life was associated with lower narratives about relationships in patients. Women undergoing treatment for BC envision their future in a less optimistic way with more narratives about life threatening events and a reduced time perspective that varied according to the type of treatment. Self-continuity and ability to imagine future specific events were preserved in patients, which are important processes helping individuals to cope with life difficulties and find meaning and direction in life.

KEYWORDS:

• Autobiographical memory
• Breast cancer
• Quality of life
• Self-defining future projections

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethics approval

Ethical approval was sought from the Research Ethical Committee of the University Paul Valéry Montpellier 3 prior to the study. This study was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (incl. The amendment from 2010) by the American Psychological Association. Participation was voluntary and all participants gave written informed consent in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.