Representation of the Body for Patients With Cancer (CORCAN)

The project aims to understand better how patients live the event of cancer and live its consequences on their bodily representations. In the study, the dynamic of the body image is not restricted to appearance but include sensations and visions of the inner body, what explains the choice of peritoneal cancer, and the treatment by cytoreductive surgery and HIPEC.

The three objectives of the study are:

• identifying the impact of the representations of the treated body on the psychological strategies to cope with the disease, the bodily changes and the prospects of life;
• making explicit the positive or negative impacts of these representations on the relationship between patients and health professionals (easing factors, misunderstandings, negotiations, etc.);
• associating the health professionals with the study in its course and evaluation in order to elaborate a methodological collaborative approach between patients, health professionals and researchers in social sciences.