Abstract
PURPOSE: To describe the social representation that adolescents from Jalisco, Mexico, have of early detection of breast cancer. DESIGN: Qualitative cross, analytical interpretative and based on the theory of social representations. Non-probability sampling. LOCATION: Contact schools in basic education level of 7municipalities of the State of Jalisco, Mexico, through various government and educational institutions. PARTICIPANTS: A hundred thirty five schooled adolescents, men and women. METHOD: Interview with 12 focus group 8-12participants and 1 with 18participants. The interviews were transcribed in Atlas Ti program version 4.1 for a semiotic analysis to identify components of social representation. RESULTS: The precocious detection linked itself to the decrease of deaths for cancer of breast, long treatments and mastectomy, but little coverage was perceived to the mammary health of the teenager. They refer as limiter elements of the precocious detection the aspects of kind, psychological and of access to the information and services of health; since facilitators there was mentioned the transition of the limiter elements to facilitators. CONCLUSIONS: A favorable panorama appears on the level of awareness of the teenagers on his mammary health, identifying as a sector highly sensitive to the information about cancer of breast and with disposition to effect actions of early detection; there are identified as important challenge the generation of campaigns, educational materials and spaces of health focused on the teenager.