Anaemia-related impairment in quality of life in elderly cancer patients prior to chemotherapy.
OBJECTIVE
Quality of life (QoL) of patients with cancer is a major area of concern for both patients and their physicians.


METHODS
We investigated QoL with the EORTC-QLQ-C30 questionnaire with reference to anaemia and Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) prior to the start of chemotherapy in 477 patients: 195 elderly cancer patients (Group A), 152 younger cancer patients (Group B), and 130 patients aged 60 years or older admitted for non-cancer related disorders (Group C).


RESULTS
In univariate analysis QoL was significantly worse in 8 out of 15 scales in anaemic compared to non anaemic patients in Group A, in 2 in Group B, and in 7 in Group C. In ANOVA analysis including KPS and haemoglobin status, the influence of anaemia and KPS independently persists in most scales in Group A, in some in Group C, but not in Group B.


CONCLUSIONS
Anaemia and functional impairment are independently related to QoL in elderly cancer and elderly medical patients, but not in younger cancer patients.
Wedding
Ulrich
U
Internal Medicine, Department of Haematology and Medical Oncology, Friedrich Schiller University, Erlanger Allee 101, Jena 07747, Germany. ulrich.wedding@med.uni-jena.de
Röhrig
Bernd
B
Pientka
Ludger
L
Höffken
Klaus
K
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000740:Anemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017567:Karnofsky Performance Status; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology*; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires