Breast cancer as a sociocultural and gender issue. An Oral History perspective

Abstract

The objective is to analyze the underlying components (sociocultural and sexogenic) of breast cancer in women living in the state of Zacatecas, addressing, in addition, the entities (support networks) constructed and shared by them. The research is divided into two parts, the first one consists of the collection and analysis of cancer statistics in this city; while the second one deals with the construction and reflexive interpretation of the 15 interviews applied through Oral History (13 were given to women in different oncological pathways and 2 to a civil society organization). The results show that health practices should not be understood as individual aspects, since they reflect the structural physiognomy of society and the direct influence of the context in which they are developed. In this sense, breast cancer receives the direct projection of diverse catalysts, such as those associated with community intervention; those linked to the health system and citizen health care; those articulated with socioeconomic and cultural aspects; and those adjacent to sex-generic parameters.