| As remarkable as breast cancer killing a record 190,000 individuals in 2001 is the modern phenomenon of increased survival. With a relative five-year survival rate of 86% after diagnosis and a “long-term” (10-year) survival rate of 76%, the issue of living longer with the harmful effects of cancer has been well documented. A growing understanding of breast cancer's psychological impact has resulted from the DSM-IV no longer necessitating the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder to result from a stressor outside the range of usual human experience; thus, a chronic illness such as cancer is qualified for consideration. Considered systemically, individuals, families and the public health delivery system as a whole suffer as a consequence of medical trauma. The purpose of this review was to provide a medical and psychosocial understanding of breast cancer and investigate psychological trauma as it has pertained to breast cancer. On this basis, a literature review documenting Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing's effect on trauma is explored in terms of its potential effectiveness in treating medical trauma specific to the breast cancer patient. |
