Meanings of quality of life held by patients with colorectal cancer in the context of chemotherapy

OBJECTIVE: this study's aim was to interpret the meanings assigned to quality of life by patients with colorectal cancer undergoing chemotherapy. METHOD: the ethnographic method and the medical anthropology theoretical framework were used. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and participant observations with 16 men and women aged from 43 to 75 years old undergoing chemotherapy in a university hospital. RESULTS: the meanings and senses describe biographical ruptures, loss of normality of life, personal and social suffering, and the need to respond to chemotherapy's side effects; chemotherapy is seen as a transitional stage for a cure. Quality of life is considered unsatisfactory because the treatment imposes personal and social limitations and QoL is linked to resuming normal life. CONCLUSIONS: the meanings show the importance of considering sociocultural aspects in the conceptualization and assessment of quality of life.