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Table 1. Summary of included articles on breast embodiment
Author Assessment methods Domain(s) Key findings/embodiment definitions
(year)
[53]
Adams et al. Literature review PSYCH This review article examined the experiences and concerns of women under
(2011) 17 qualitative studies the age of 45 diagnosed with breast cancer. Key issues identified included
included feeling ‘out of sync’ and fear of recurrence. These articles were analyzed
with a framework of altered embodied subjectivity. Beyond visual changes,
the participants underscored the feelings of being in an altered body
[20]
Cheng et al. Qualitative PSYCH This study interviewed women who decided to undergo delayed breast
(2018) 8 semi-structured reconstruction. Four embodiment themes were highlighted: losing a sense of
interviews self, living with an altered body, reclaiming the body/self, and rebuilding the
body/self
[19]
Chuang et al. Qualitative PSYCH This study evaluated perceptions of the body from women diagnosed with
(2018) 8 interview participants, 20 breast cancer and treated with a mastectomy more than 5 years prior. Main
transcripts themes from the interviews included abandoning objectification, restoring
body image, and redefining the self
[40]
Boer et al. (2015) Qualitative PSYCH + This study interviewed women prior to undergoing breast reconstruction
10 women, 26 interviews at SENS regarding their expectations of their body post-reconstruction. The women
different stages of were also interviewed after reconstruction. In the analysis, their expectations
reconstruction were categorized as dealing with their “gazed body,” their “capable body,”
and their “felt body.” After reconstruction, these expectations had to be
reconfigured and many had to adjust to the unexpected, namely altered
feeling of the reconstructed breast
[52]
Esplen et al. Review PSYCH This review summarized various body image interventions for women with
(2020) breast cancer, with a particular focus on online interventions. The authors
outlined a construct of “embodied body image” in cancer in which body
image is multifaceted and linked to patients’ early history, self-identity, and
self-worth
Graham et al. [60] Qualitative PSYCH This article explored women’s decision processes for risk-reducing
(2018) 4 semi-structured mastectomy, highlighting social and political factors that shape the process.
interviews, 5 online forums, The analysis highlights how a sense of “embodied selves” is often gendered
3 online newspaper articles and culturally shaped by conceptions of womanhood and feminity
[59]
Greco (2015) Qualitative PSYCH + This article examined the 2010 controversy in France regarding the use and
12 interviews, analyses of SENS eventual recall of silicone breast prostheses. The mixed methods article
policy documents of includes interviews with patients who received these breast implants during
French/EU regulatory post-mastectomy reconstruction. The article analyzed the patients’
agencies, medical literature, experiences of both physical and psychological pain utilizing the concept of
and an online forum “embodied risk,” insofar as the risks derived from prostheses and implants
are literally embodied by patients
Hansen et al. [18] Qualitative PSYCH This article assessed women’s experiences of oncoplastic breast surgery and
(2022) 7 women, 14 interviews how treatment affected body image. Participants discussed how the
reconstructed breast restored a sense of normalcy, in particular with
maintaining interpersonal relationships. The findings were framed by a
theory of embodiment defined by philosopher Merleau-Ponty, insofar as the
altered body is an essential part of the subjective being, and time and
transition are needed before the altered body is integrated into an
individual's embodiment
[21]
Holmberg (2014) Qualitative PSYCH This article examined the nature of persistent worry that women may
Interviews with 17 first-time experience after breast cancer treatment, particularly mistrust towards their
breast cancer patients, 4 own bodies. The authors described how cancer diagnoses impact a patient’s
oncologists, and 10 nurses sense of embodiment, given these diagnoses are often received before a
physical sense of illness, therefore leading to an experience of shock. The
authors conceive of post-treatment worry as an “embodied sense of risk”
[17]
Hopwood et al. Review PSYCH This article offers a novel framework for embodied body image in cancer
(2019) patients. The approach consists of three dimensions of embodiment: “being
a body, having a body, using a body.” Applications of the framework were
illustrated through three case examples of breast cancer patients
Lende et al. [58] Qualitative PSYCH This article examines the decision-making of African-American women
(2009) 15 semi-structured regarding breast cancer screening. The article describes an “embodied
interviews approach,” which highlights the significance of subjective experience and of
understanding the body as relational and meaningful
Lindau et al. [38] Review SENS + This article describes bionic technologies for the restoration of sensation in
(2020) PSYCH the nipple-areolar complex. The authors highlight that mastectomy often
leads to numbness of the chest, which can impact sexual well-being and lead
to the “disembodiment” of the breasts. The authors discuss their sensor
technologies, which can be placed under the skin of the nipple-areolar
complex, to detect touches
Loaring et al. Qualitative PSYCH This study focused on couples' experiences of mastectomy with