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Abstract

Preface

VOLUME 69 - NUMBER 4 / July-August (Preface)

Cynthia Villarreal-Garza, Department of Research and Breast Tumors, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología (INCan), Mexico City; Breast Cancer Center, Hospital Zambrano Hellion, Tecnológico de Monterrey, San Pedro Garza García, Monterrey, N.L.; Joven & Fuerte: Program for the Care and Research of Young Women with Breast Cancer in Mexico, Mexico City;, Mexico
Andrea Castro-Sanchez, Joven & Fuerte: Program for the Care and Research of Young Women with Breast Cancer in Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico

Young women with breast cancer (BC) are a special population with distinctive genetic, clinical, and psychosocial features and requirements based on at least three considerations: (1) Cancer presentation at young age is often diagnosed at advanced stages, hence its prognosis is worse compared to their older counterparts; (2) young BC patients often receive aggressive and prolonged systemic treatments that can be associated with significant longterm morbidity; and (3) young women with BC experience substantial psychosocial vulnerability resulting from high levels of distress and depression associated with oncological interventions. These factors pose complex issues for young patients with BC, particularly in regard to their family dynamics, social and professional lives, and self-development, thereby substantially undermining their quality of life.

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