social and cultural factors and finally finding support from significant
others.
Exploring the problems that breast cancer women encounter
is a realistic corner stone for planning and implementing medical
and nursing interventions to help them live with their optimum
level of functioning.
Breast cancer-related issues, both in the world and in Iran,
have been mainly studied using quantitative approaches. These
are not simply answering the complex questions regarding
human nature, and exploring deep layers of human feelings
needs a more holistic approach (Holloway & Wheeler 2009).
Qualitative research allows researchers to get to the inner experience
of the participants to determine how meanings are formed
through and in culture and to discover rather than simply test
variables (Corbin & Strauss 2008).
Taleghani et al. (2006) conducted a qualitative research in Iran
to find how the women cope with breast cancer. That was a
valuable piece of the work, but still the meaning of living with
breast cancer for the women was ambiguous. The aim of the
current qualitative study was to capture the meaning of living
with breast cancer from the unique perspective and through the
lived experiences of breast cancer women explained by their own
words in a private clinic in Iran.