Blackmore, TaniaNorman, KimberleyBurrett, VanessaScarlet, JenniCampbell, IanLawrenson, Ross2026-07-282026-07-282024Blackmore, T., Norman, K., Burrett, V., Scarlet, J., Campbell, I., & Lawrenson, R. (2024). The factors involved in surgical decision-making in younger women diagnosed with breast cancer in Aotearoa New Zealand: A qualitative analysis. Journal of Health Psychology, 30(1), 115-128. https://doi.org/10.1177/135910532412370751359-1053https://hdl.handle.net/10289/18477Women diagnosed with breast cancer must make important surgical decisions. The decision-making process for younger women is complex, with this group more likely to have an advanced diagnosis and life-stage considerations that can impact on treatment. This study investigated the decision-making process of women aged <50 years who had undergone breast cancer surgery within the preceding 12 months in Aotearoa New Zealand. Twelve women participated in semi-structured qualitative interviews to explore the factors that influenced treatment decisions. Thematic analysis resulted in three themes. Fear was the main concept identified as the primary influence on initial decision-making. Good quality shared decision-making between patient and clinician was found to provide essential support during the diagnosis to treatment period. In addition, women expressed a need for multi-modal presentation of medical information and more material reflecting younger women. These findings inform provision for younger women making surgical decisions when diagnosed with breast cancer.Licence for published version: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/breast cancerqualitative researchshared decision-makingsurgeryyounger womenJournal Article10.1177/135910532412370751461-727752 Psychology5203 Clinical and Health Psychology5201 Applied and Developmental Psychology5201 Applied and developmental psychology5203 Clinical and health psychology