Surviving cancer, managing the heart: Awareness of potential cardiovascular toxicity and barriers to cardiovascular self-management among women with breast cancer: A qualitative descriptive study.

Objective: This study aimed to explore how women with breast cancer perceived potential cardiovascular toxicity and engaged in self-management to support their cardiovascular health, monitor for symptoms, and adhere to clinical surveillance. Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was employed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposively selected sample of 12 women with breast cancer. The interviews were audio-recorded with the participants' consent and transcribed verbatim. NVivo 12 was used to organise the data, which were analysed using inductive thematic analysis to develop themes and subthemes. Results: The study included 12 women aged 40-74 years. Participants reported multiple challenges in recognising and understanding potential cardiovascular toxicity, possible cardiovascular symptoms, and other treatment-related symptoms. Four themes and nine subthemes were identified: (1) overwhelming physical and functional burden of treatment; (2) fragmented knowledge and awareness of potential cardiovascular toxicity; (3) health care communication gaps and unmet informational needs; and (4) psychosocial and systemic barriers to overall well-being and health management. Conclusions: The participants faced substantial barriers to understanding and monitoring for potential cardiovascular toxicity. These challenges highlight the need for the future development and evaluation of more proactive, patient-centred interventions. Proposed strategies, such as tailored education, symptom-reporting tools, and structured follow-up models, require future research to determine their effectiveness.