A Phenomenological Study on Breast Cancer Survivors' Experiences of Mind Subtraction Meditation

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to understand the meditation experiences of breast cancer survivors. METHODS: The participants were 20 breast cancer survivors who participated in 8 weeks of mind subtraction meditation at a tertiary hospital in Korea 2013. The data was collected by in-depth individual interviews, personal logs about the meditation experiences, and field diaries. Data were analyzed using Giorgi's phenomenological analysis. RESULTS: A total of 13 subthemes and 4 themes were derived from the analysis. Participants began to meditate with some doubts initially but were soon comfortable as they became familiar with the meditation method. As they discarded their negativity, they experienced positive changes in their mindset. The experiences of discarded negativity were summarized as "discarding the hate, resentment, and obsession," "discarding the depression, anxiety, and stress," and "discarding the false me." The change after meditation was named "from restraint to freedom," "from negativism to positivism," "from closed doors to the wide open world." and "looking forward to the true happiness." CONCLUSION: Breast cancer survivors reflected on their lives and experienced positive changes as they discarded their negativity through meditation. It is recommended to perform the nursing interventions utilizing the meditation and conduct further studies to examine its beneficial effects.

Alternative Therapy and Abnormal Liver Function During Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients

Although hepatotoxicity has been rarely reported during adjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer patients, we observed a high frequency in our patients who were also taking alternative agents. We therefore sought to determine the association between hepatotoxicity and alternative agents during adjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer patients. All breast cancer patients were treated with the same chemotherapeutic regimen and had normal baseline liver function test (LFT). LFT was checked repeatedly during each cycle of chemotherapy. Patients showing LFT abnormalities were asked about use of alternative agents, and, after the end of chemotherapy, a questionnaire was administered to each patient on their use of alternative agents. Of 178 patients, 65 (36.5%) admitted using alternative therapy, and significantly more patients in this group developed LFT abnormalities (37/65, 56.9%) than those who denied taking alternative therapy (25/113, 22.1%, p=0.001). Although LFT abnormalities were mild to moderate and normalized in most patients after cessation of alternative agents, it remained a serious problem in one patient. In conclusion, alternative therapy may be one of the etiologies for abnormal LFT in breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy.