Temporal assessment of quality of life of head and neck cancer patients receiving radical radiotherapy.
The study was undertaken to evaluate physical, psychological and functional aspects in quality of life (QoL) assessment prospectively in biopsy-proven head and neck cancer patients receiving radical radiotherapy. Fifty male patients were assessed using Karnofsky's Performance Status (KPS), Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Functional Living Index-Cancer (FLIC). Patient questionnaires were completed before radiotherapy, during 3-4 weeks of radiotherapy and 3 months after radiotherapy. Before the start of radiotherapy, KPS was 91 +/- 10.26, FLIC was 129.98 +/- 33.41 and BDI was 7.10 +/- 4.57. This indicated good performance and functional status with lower depression. In weeks 3-4 of radiotherapy, KPS (71.00 +/- 20.12) and FLIC (81.34 +/- 45.23) decreased, while BDI (16.56 +/- 9.01) increased, indicating impairment in QoL. Three months after radiotherapy, KPS (78.37 +/- 23.0), FLIC (119.51 +/- 43.62) and BDI (9.02 +/- 7.81) improved but were not restored to pre-treatment levels. When patients were scheduled for radical radiotherapy, maximum deterioration in QoL was seen in weeks 3-4. This is the time when maximum supportive care and psychologic counselling is required.
Chawla
S
S
Department of Radiation Oncology (Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital), All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.
Mohanti
B K
BK
Rakshak
M
M
Saxena
S
S
Rath
G K
GK
Bahadur
S
S
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D001706:Biopsy; D003376:Counseling; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors