“Would a man smell a rose then throw it away?” Jordanian men’s perspectives on women's breast cancer and breast health

BMC Women's Health

Research Article

Hana Taha¹  Rolf Wahlström²  Lennarth Nyström³  Vanja Berggren⁴  Raeda Al-Qutob⁵ 

[1] Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden;Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden;Jordan Breast Cancer Program, Amman, Jordan;King Hussein Cancer Foundation, Amman, Jordan;Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden;Family Medicine and Clinical Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Care Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden;Division of Epidemiology and Global Health, Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden;Faculty of Health Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden;Women and Child Health Division, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan;

关键词: Breast Cancer;    Breast Cancer Screening;    Clinical Breast Examination;    Breast Health;    Taboo Word;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1472-6874-13-41

 received in 2013-05-08, accepted in 2013-10-17,  发布年份 2013

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundBreast cancer is the most common malignancy afflicting women, and the most common cancer overall in Jordan. A woman’s decision to go for screening is influenced by her social support network. This study aims to explore Jordanian men’s individual and contextual perspectives on women’s breast cancer and their own role in the breast health of the females within their families.MethodsAn explorative qualitative design was used to purposively recruit 24 married men aged 27 to 65 years (median 43 years) from four governorates in Jordan. Data in the form of interviews transcriptions was subjected to qualitative content analysis.ResultsThree themes were identified: a) Supporting one’s wife; b) Marital needs and obligations; c) Constrained by a culture of destiny and shame. The first theme was built on men’s feelings of responsibility for the family’s health and well-being, their experiences of encouraging their wives to seek health care and their providing counselling and instrumental support. The second theme emerged from men’s views about other men’s rejection of a wife inflicted by breast cancer, their own perceptions of diminished femininity due to mastectomy and their own concerns about protecting the family from the hereditary risk of breast cancer. The third theme was seen in men’s perception of breast cancer as an inevitable act of God that is far away from one’s own family, in associating breast cancer with improper behaviour and in their readiness to face the culture of Eib (shame).ConclusionsJordanian men perceive themselves as having a vital role in supporting, guiding and encouraging their wives to follow breast cancer early detection recommendations. Breast health awareness campaigns could involve husbands to capitalize on family support.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Taha et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2013