The experience of breast cancer can also create challenges for a marriage or signif- icant relationship. Difficulties include communication problems, difficulty coping and sexual dysfunction (one study found that approximately 50% of women with cancer had at least one diagnosed sexual dysfunction during the posttreatment year) (Anderson,Ander- son, & DeProsse, 1989). However, research suggests that when marriages are strong before the development of breast cancer, the disease does not usually disrupt the relation- ship, and may result in an even closer relationship (Oktay & Walter, 1991). And yet, in a troubled relationship, the disease may prove too stressful for the couple to handle (Oktay, 1998)
