Introduction. Breast cancer was the most common type of cancer among women in 2012 in all European countries. It represented about 22% of all the cases of cancer suffered by Polish women. Aim. The aim of this paper is to assess the influence of sociomedical factors such as: age, education, material and occupational status, as well as time that passed from the surgery on the quality of life of women who underwent surgery of breast cancer. Material and methods. The survey involved 221 women, members of the ‘Amazonki’ association. It included a questionnaire and a standardised research tool – a self-assessment questionnaire on the quality of life - SF-36 v2. Results. The average age of respondents was 62.6 ± 8.7. Almost one third of them (30.4%) had higher education, the majority (43.6%) was of the middle economic status. The vast majority (68.4%) were retired or pensioners. Almost 60% of respondents underwent a single mastectomy without breast reconstruction, and 17,6% had surgery preserving breasts. Above 60% underwent surgery more than 5 years ago, almost 12% were operated between 12 and 24 months ago. Conclusions. Age, education, material and occupational status influence women’s life quality.

Key words: quality of life, breast cancer, mastectomy, breast conserving therapy.