Caring For You
Body of Work
Women’s Body Image Struggles & Support on the Cancer Journey. Tania Amardeil
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or many women living with cancer or in remission, changes in their appearance can be a major source of concern and anxiety. This is not vanity. Much of our identity is related to our physical appearance from how we wear our hair to what clothes we put on. Body shape and size, including breasts, are often tied to a woman sense of self, self-expression, sexuality, and self-esteem. Appearance-related impacts of cancer can be temporary (like hair loss and skin changes) or more permanent (like surgery or scarring). They can all affect women at a time when they may already feel vulnerable, which can negatively impact their mental and emotional health. For many women facing a cancer diagnosis, there's enough to cope with emotionally without also feeling that there's no space to speak about body image issues or that it is somehow selfish or vain to worry about them. For DeeJay Jodoin, a B.C. woman in remission, changes to her physical appearance like hair loss and weight gain were hard to accept. “It [cancer treatment] alters your appearance. You want to get back to the way you were, but it takes time.”
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