BETWEEN FAITH AND MEDICINE: A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF RELIGIOUS INFLUENCERS’ NARRATIVES ON BREAST CANCER AWARENESS IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer remains the most prevalent malignancy among women in Pakistan, where delayed diagnosis, sociocultural stigma, and modesty-related barriers significantly impede early detection. Religious influencers have become prominent communicative actors through digital platforms, shaping public understandings of health, morality, and gender norms. Limited research has examined how these influencers discursively construct breast cancer awareness. Aim: This study explores how Pakistani religious influencers frame breast cancer within faith-based narratives and negotiate the relationship between spiritual beliefs and biomedical recommendations.

Methodology: A qualitative design informed by Critical Discourse Analysis was applied to eight purposively selected online videos produced by Pakistani religious influencers. Fairclough’s three-dimensional model guided systematic analysis of textual features, discursive practices, and socio-cultural contexts.

Findings: Four dominant discourses were identified: (1) breast cancer as a divine test and moral trial, (2) modesty as a regulatory mechanism governing women’s bodies, (3) hierarchical positioning of biomedical knowledge beneath faith-centred healing, and (4) gendered religious authority mediating women’s health decision-making. These discourses collectively reinforce religious legitimacy while replicating structural barriers to early screening and autonomous health-seeking.

Conclusion: Religious influencers hold substantial potential to support culturally resonant breast cancer messaging; however, their discourse often reproduces modesty-driven silences, moralized illness interpretations, and patriarchal authority structures. Integrating faith-sensitive communication with evidence-based guidance is essential for enhancing breast cancer awareness and improving timely healthcare utilization in Pakistan.