Social constructions of femaleness in writing about cancer

The breast cancer fanfare: Sociocultural factors and women's health in Ghana

Traditional notions of the "full" woman and sociocultural beliefs about gender roles contribute to a unique experience of breast cancer in Africa. I used the critical feminist lens to analyze dis-courses about breast cancer in mainstream Ghanaian media. I found that breast cancer awareness is promoted amidst fanfare and that cultural notions of the female breasts, including their sexual appeal, are implied in breast cancer discourse. This obscures a nuanced understanding of the disease and women's health globally, limits the power of women to name their experiences, and contributes to the late presentation of the dis-ease in sub-Saharan Africa. I discuss the implications of the findings for international, interdisciplinary scholarship.

The meaning of cancer for Australian Aboriginal women; changing the focus of cancer nursing

AIM

The purpose of the study was to explore why Aboriginal women participate in cancer screening programs but appear reluctant to following-up results, or accept medical advice about treatment.

METHODS

Interpretive ethnography, a qualitative methodology, was used to explore Aboriginal women's perception of cancer, and the cultural context in which meaning was constructed and influenced treatment decision. Data collection, which occurred over two years, involved fieldwork, participant-observation, face-to-face interviews and focus groups, in two rural Aboriginal communities. Forty eight interviews were recorded from a cross section of the communities, including cancer survivors and patients, family members, health care providers and other women from the community.

RESULTS

Key findings were that Aboriginal women's had a fearful and fatalistic attitude toward cancer, doubted the efficacy of treatment and carried an enduring ambivalence toward the authority of whiteman's medicine. The women faced a dilemma of wanting access to cancer treatment options but feared entering hospital or clinics not attuned to their cultural needs.

CONCLUSION

The findings highlight the need for a culture-centred approach that decentres the authority of conventional services and instead gives prominence to Aboriginal cultural values as a focal point in cancer control. It should be the responsibility of cancer nurses and others to engage with their local Aboriginal communities to build relationships that foster an exchange of learning about cultural differences that make a difference to how cancer control is practiced.