Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - National Cancer Institute - Department of Cancer Biology

Background: Chemotherapy is one of the main treatment modalities for breast cancer, however, it has many side effects. Good patients{u2019} self-care practice to manage and cope with chemotherapy side effects can help the patients to alleviate the severity of these side effects. Objectives: To assess self-care behaviors and their efficacy among female breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Cairo University (CU), and study the possible associations of different socio-demographic, clinical and Health Belief Model factors with the level of self-care behavior. Patients and Methods: This is an observational cross sectional study that included adult females (> 18 years old), who received at least 2 cycles of chemotherapy as outpatients at NCI. A convenience sample of 178 female patients was recruited. Personal interviews and revising the patients{u2019} medical records were performed to collect the relevant data. Results: The mean age of the patients was 47.76 ± 10.5 years. The majority of the study participants were married (88.8%), housewives (80.3%) and residents of urban areas (61.2%). 32.6% of them were illiterate. The overall self-care behavior was 48%. Age, stage of the disease, number of experienced side effects and perceived benefits of self-care behaviors had significant independent effects on the level of the self-care behavior

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