The quality of life in nasopharyngeal carcinoma radiotherapy: A longitudinal study

Yajing Kan; Shuang Yang; Xueting Wu; Siqi Wang; Xueyu Li; Fangyuan Zhang; Peiguo Wang; Jing Zhao

doi:10.1016/j.apjon.2023.100251

The quality of life in nasopharyngeal carcinoma radiotherapy: A longitudinal study

Asia Pac J Oncol Nurs. 2023 May 26;10(7):100251. doi: 10.1016/j.apjon.2023.100251. eCollection 2023 Jul.

Authors

Yajing Kan^{1

2}, Shuang Yang¹, Xueting Wu^{1

2}, Siqi Wang^{1

2}, Xueyu Li^{1

2}, Fangyuan Zhang¹, Peiguo Wang¹, Jing Zhao¹

Affiliations

¹ Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin's Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Key Laboratory of Center Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin, China.
² Graduate School of Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.

Abstract

Objective: This article aims to longitudinally compare nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients' quality of life (QoL) during radiotherapy (RT) and identify QoL correlates.

Methods: This study included 98 patients, with 85 completing full follow-up. Data were collected at baseline (T₁), midpoint of RT (T₂), and RT completion (T₃), between October 2021 and November 2022. QoL was assessed using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30). RIOM severity was evaluated by the toxicity criteria of Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG). The nutritional status was evaluated using the Nutritional Risk Screening 2002 (NRS 2002), body mass index (BMI), and the Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA). The generalized estimating equation described the QoL evolution and correlated it with RIOM, nutritional status, and other influential factors.

Results: Significant deterioration was observed in various subscales of EORTC QLQ-C30 during RT, including global health status (GHS), physical function, role function, emotional function, fatigue, nausea/vomiting, pain, insomnia, appetite loss, and constipation (all P < 0.05). Substantial deterioration was also observed in RIOM, nutritional status, and part of hematological indexes (all P < 0.05). The decline of QoL was associated with gender, age, education level, chemotherapy regimen, Karnofsky performance status (KPS) score, RIOM severity, NRS 2002 score, PG-SGA score, and lymphocyte level (all P < 0.05).

Conclusions: QoL declined during RT and were associated with certain factors. Healthcare professionals should focus on alleviating treatment-related complications and identifying individuals at high risk of malnutrition early to improve outcomes for patients with NPC.

Keywords: Longitudinal study; Nasopharyngeal carcinoma; Nutritional status; Quality of life; Radiotherapy.