BREAST CANCER & SEXUAL SATISFACTION; AN EXPLORATORY SEQUENTIAL MIXED METHOD RESEARCH

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NUDRAT MUSHTAQ, NASIM KHAN MAHSUD, UME HABIBA

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer worldwide with an estimation of 7.8 million females alive with it at the end of 2020. In 2020, 25,928 cases of female breast cancer were reported in Pakistan making it the highest among all other malignancies. This research paper is part of a larger research study using an exploratory sequential mixed method research to broadly investigate the impact of breast cancer on a couple’s marital satisfaction; this paper highlights the relationship between breast cancer and sexual satisfaction and then its impact on couples’ married life. The data collected in the qualitative data collection phase was thematically analyzed and the outcomes were verified in the second phase of quantitative data collection and analysis. The findings of both data approved the prior assumption that the sexual satisfaction of both cancer patients and their spouses is impacted by breast cancer and its resulting in relationship strains.

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Author Biography

NUDRAT MUSHTAQ, NASIM KHAN MAHSUD, UME HABIBA

  1. NUDRAT MUSHTAQ1

Assistant Professor, Dept. of Sociology-Sardar Bahadur Khan Women University-Quetta, Pakistan

  1. NASIM KHAN MAHSUD2

Assistant Professor, Dept. of Sociology-Allama Iqbal Open University-AIOU, Islamabad

  1. UME HABIBA3

Instructor-Sociology, Virtual University of Pakistan

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